


BLOOM

by DryWavelength



Category: Soul Eater, Soul Eater Not!
Genre: Angst, Child Abuse, Death, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Multi, Ok probably ooc everyone, Other, Panic Attacks, ResBang 2017, Suicide, how to feelings??, just dont question the logic behind all this, probably ooc Maka and crona, really cliche romantic mush, resbang, seriously lots and lots of death, technically late because im slow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2019-02-27 19:01:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 34,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13254660
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DryWavelength/pseuds/DryWavelength
Summary: Maka Albarn, the girl with blooming astilbes, never allowed herself to feel love. Sure, she loves her friends and family, but as far as romantic love comes… she’s terrified of it. Just like everyone else on this earth, she was born with a specific phobia that relates to what will eventually kill her. Her friends at the academy have fears that are equally as strange. While their fear represents their death, the flowers that bloom from their body represent their life force, their personality, and everything that makes up their being. Maka’s flowers have a specific meaning- “I’ll be waiting for you.” She always wondered- waiting for who? She constantly asks herself this until her childhood friend, Crona Gorgon, suddenly appears out of nowhere and truly makes her consider going against her fear. FLOWERS/FEAR AU





	1. Ludus

**Author's Note:**

> First resbang! A day late cause I'm a potato. Also not BETA'd so hopefully there are no major errors that I didn't catch.  
> Here are the links to my artists' wonderful work!!  
> http://sarahdoodles.tumblr.com/post/169241886754/its-officially-my-resbang-posting-date-and-im
> 
> https://thenoctivagant.tumblr.com/post/169245423718/resbang-2017-bloom-art-part-2-art-part-3
> 
> https://thenoctivagant.tumblr.com/post/169245426373/resbang-2017-bloom-art-part-1-art-part-3
> 
> https://thenoctivagant.tumblr.com/post/169245428703/resbang-2017-bloom-art-part-1-art-part

It is the dawn.  
**************************************************************  
_“Crona, I’ve finally found you!”  
Crona lifted their head, glancing up at Maka and sighing.  
“I didn’t think you would be able to find me here!” Crona cried, lifting themselves out of the hole that had been their solace for an impromptu game of hide-and-seek.  
“It was way too easy, silly!” Maka grasped their small hand and pulled, yanking them up easily and nearly ripping Crona’s arm out of its socket.  
Maka stared at Crona’s black dress, which had uniform diamond shapes at the bottom and currently looked like it had been soaked in a pool of mud.  
“You’re all dirty.” She commented.  
“S-so are you!” Crona blushed, their cheeks dark.  
Maka got busy brushing the dirt off of both her and Crona’s dresses. Dust puffed up and shrouded the stone ground in a light brown coating, as the mid-morning sun pushed itself through the gaps in the tall city buildings. Crona coughed.  
Maka and Crona, no more than 6, were told to go play nearby while their parents talked. About what, the kids didn’t know, so they found a grassy patch in the park to entertain themselves.  
“Lady M-Medusa will probably come get me soon, I wish I could stay longer with you.”  
Maka swept her fingers across Crona’s face, struggling to remove a spot of dirt. Shivering, Crona tentatively let her clean off their face, finding it comforting.  
“I want to stay longer with you too.” Maka stepped back, inspecting them for any more dirt.  
“Thank you,” Crona exhaled, “Lady Medusa will get mad if I’m dirty.”  
Maka puffed, “She’ll just have to deal with it!” Maka was growing increasingly irritated with the way Crona’s mother seemed to be treating them.  
They looked over to their parents conversing- their flowers were in full bloom. Spirit’s geraniums, which used to be pure white, had recently begun fading into pink, causing a bit of tension and worry in Maka’s family. Spirit was obviously making googly-eyes at Medusa.  
Maka’s mother, however, had strong, bright gladioluses whose peach color had not changed as long as Maka could remember. Maka’s flowers had barely come in and were only a few sprouts at this point.  
Maka and Crona had met just a few months ago- Maka had been out on the street near her house when she found Crona curled up behind a wall, so shrunken into themselves that they were almost ingrained in the earth. Maka had talked to them and urged them to share what was wrong.  
“I-I uhhh.” Crona’s whisper was hoarse. They sniffled a bit. Their face was blotchy and pink, and they looked like they could cry again at any moment. The tiny shrub of thorns shuddered against their back.  
“Yes?” Maka pushed only a bit, trying not to make them too uncomfortable. She saw Crona’s fingers clawing at the grass.  
“I ran away. From Lady Medusa.”  
Maka sat there silently, listening to them explain further. She got most of the story, piece by piece.  
“When I make her mad, she hurts me. But she always seems to be mad, so she… always hurts me.” Crona’s look of absolute dread was what made Maka eventually throw her arms around Crona, holding them close, feeling them stiffen and then slowly relax.  
“Hey,” she whispered, “Will you let me be your friend?”  
“Um… really?” Crona began to sniffle again, their tears dripping onto Maka’s leaves.  
Maka began to recite a calming lullaby that she’d heard her mother sing to her many times. **Hush little baby, don’t say a word, Mama’s gonna buy you a mockingbird…**  
Maka and Crona had sat there for a while, Maka telling Crona about any mundane thing she could think of to get their mind off of their troubles, and holding their hand tight.  
Of course, it couldn’t last, and Medusa eventually stumbled upon the both of them.  
“I can’t even imagine what people would think if I lost track of you!” She had yelled at Crona, seizing their arm and wrenching them away from Maka.  
Crona received a smack across the face.  
“O-ow! Stop it! I won’t run away again, I promise, just please don’t hit me, please, it hurts!”  
Crona said that they hadn’t been out of their house since then. Maka didn’t know what to do with that information.  
Maka tore her gaze away from her parents and grabbed at Crona’s hand, beaming. Crona squeezed, thankful for the grounding touch.  
“Oh, hey, that’s a really pretty rose sprouting from your back,” she commented, “It’s blooming even bigger than the last time I saw you.”  
Crona shuddered, their teeth chattering.  
“I hate it,” they grimaced, “I hate it so much.”  
Maka’s face fell.  
“Hate it? Why?”  
“I- well, I,” Crona swallowed, “I’m so scared.”  
They stood there in silence for a while, Maka mulling over this information the best she could. She glanced back and forth between Crona and the ground.  
“We’re moving soon.”  
“Huh?”  
“We’re moving away, to a place called Death City!” she met Crona’s gaze and smiled, but the sadness was evident in her eyes, “It sounds pretty funny, but my mama told me there’s a school there that teaches kids how to fight.”  
Crona eventually found their voice again.  
“Fight? Like hurting people?”  
“Y’know, like ‘combat.’ For self-defense or fighting crime. Only special people get in, so I’m gonna work extra hard and maybe I’ll get to go there when I’m older!”  
Crona faltered, “You- you’re going away.”  
“Well, uh,” Maka wavered, “Yes. I have to go with Mama and Papa.”  
Maka almost let go of Crona’s hand, but then squeezed it even tighter.  
“I’ll wait for you.”  
“W-What?” Crona started.  
Maka grinned thoughtfully.  
“We’ll see each other again, I just know it. So, wait for me to find you, it won’t be long, I promise.”  
Crona looked down.  
“I believe you.”  
“Kurona, come. Now.” Medusa had suddenly walked back over to the children. She snapped her fingers and Crona jolted, toddling over to stand behind their mother, 4 feet away as always.  
Maka cocked an eyebrow at the strange pronunciation of Crona’s name. The name Crona’s mother used for them, even if it was only slightly different, send a jolt of dread down Crona’s spine.  
“We’re going home, I hope that girl didn’t plague your mind with whatever you two were talking about. And I trust that you did not say anything about me, either.” Medusa began to walk down the street.  
**Hush little baby, don’t say a word…**  
“No ma’am,” they lied, following after her. They glanced back, panicked, only to see Maka standing a distance away, watching wide-eyed as Crona left.  
And for 10 years, Maka Albarn was lost to the nothingness of time._  
**************************************************************

Medusa’s heirloom sword always set her on edge. The long, sharpened blade, the dark hilt, the way it seemed to whisper to her in the middle of the night… That thing stayed locked in the glass case where it belonged.  
A fear of children, however strange it seemed to her sisters, was still the burden she had to carry, similar to everyone else’s. This phobia would kill her in some way, just as the phobias of billions of others was what brought about their demise. How ironic that the woman’s own flowers, sprouting out of her shoulders and flowing down her arms, represented motherhood. The pink carnations wilted and became yellow, and when it was rumored that the woman was pregnant, everyone believed that the child would be her downfall.  
Medusa attempted everything to get rid of the baby inside of her, however dangerous. All of her efforts were unsuccessful. When the child was born, she never bothered giving it a name, feeding it as little as possible and keeping it in some dark room somewhere so she didn’t have to look at it. She only took it out when convenient- usually to impress her family. She had to teach it to speak and made sure it knew the bare minimum of how to live life in general for when she brought it out in public. After all, quite a few people around the area that she lived in knew that she had a child, and she wouldn’t want anyone getting suspicious of her.  
She came up with so many cruel punishments to teach them to obey. Locking them in a cage for days at a time, making them wait on her hand and foot until they collapsed from exhaustion, or even, in some cases, beating them with whatever object that she found closest to her whenever they would get too close. She had never been this violent before, usually choosing to stay out of most of her family’s business, but something inside her had changed once the baby was born. She took all of her aggression out on the source of her fear.  
Medusa eventually named her child- but only after discovering that it was afraid of the black rose emerging from its upper back. Thorns soon arose, thorns that twisted and clawed and broke through into the child’s very consciousness. As if everything Medusa had done up to this point hadn’t been enough, she named her child “Kurona” to represent the darkness of their terrified soul.  
**************************************************************  
“…na! Kurona!” Crona’s eyes snapped open, examining the dark room in a hurry. They got up from their resting spot on the cold floor and made an effort to determine where the voice was coming from. Black leaves curled around them, trying to make themselves visible in the edge of Crona’s vision. They trembled slightly, brushing the leaves back where they belonged. When they heard another shout, they rushed off into the dimly lit hallway.  
Crona eventually found the source of the voice in the dining room. Medusa, on the phone, was twirling some pasta on a fork and tapping her crossed leg incessantly against the leg of the table.  
“…Yes, I know that… Oh? You have other news? Let me hear it then…”  
Crona approached their mother carefully, making absolutely sure not to get too close. Medusa didn’t like it when they were near enough to touch her. They shuffled a bit, staring at the floor.  
“Kurona, bring me a glass of wine.” Her long, bony finger pointed in the direction of the kitchen offhandedly.  
“Yes, ma’am,” they hurried off into the other room and busied themselves with picking out a glass from the cupboard and fiddling with the cork in a long bottle of what they assumed was wine.  
“…don’t understand why my sisters are being so confrontational with the academy…” Medusa’s conversation carried in from the other room and spiked Crona’s interest. They hesitated as they were about to pour the glass, stopping for a moment to listen in.  
“…only took out a few of their subordinates, if they didn’t threaten them so often, then they could stay under the academy’s radar…”  
Crona knew that their family runs some kind of shady organization, and are always getting in trouble with the law.  
_But what’s this about an academy?_ They thought. They heard Medusa’s footsteps scuffle around in the other room, pacing.  
“…this one girl has been especially troubling. What was her name? The short, blonde one with the pigtails and long coat. Martha? Mia? Well, that doesn’t matter…”  
Crona searched their memory. Why did that sound so familiar?  
“…anyways, I have to go. It’s going to take a while for me to fix this problem that my sisters created.” The phone clicked shut.  
Crona realized what they were supposed to be doing and almost panicked trying to pour the wine as quickly as they could. They sloshed a bit onto their hands and set the bottle down carefully before speeding into the dining room.  
“Aren’t you finished yet-” Medusa was unexpectedly standing right next to the entrance and Crona couldn’t stop themselves before they slammed into her, spilling wine all over her front and dropping the glass onto the floor where it broke into a million pieces. Medusa was knocked down, and Crona was stuttering as soon as they realized what they just did.  
“What the _fuck_ is wrong with you!?” Medusa screeched, her arm flying at Crona’s face. Sharp nails scraped across their skin and suddenly Crona was on the ground, disoriented and clutching at their cheek.  
“Get out of my sight, now! Now!” Medusa kicked at Crona’s ribs as they scrambled to get up and rushed out of the room. Something shattered against the wall in the hallway right next to Crona’s head. As soon as Crona realized that Medusa was hurling glass shards at them, they dashed into a nearby chamber, grasping their injured face and breathing heavily. They heard a door slam.  
Crona stayed curled up on the floor for a few minutes. After they regained the courage to move, they opened their eyes and let out an unsteady breath. Shaking, Crona looked up and their eyes traveled down the length of the wall. Old, dusty picture frames immortalized generations of Gorgons. Their eyes bared down on Crona, piercing right into their very soul. Crona rubbed at the scrape on their face, shivering as they kneeled in front of their ancestors. They grasped near the bottom of their dress, lifting it up to reveal a history of scars, some mostly faded, others fresh and deep. They felt thorns uncoil from their upper back, thrashing about and cutting through their mind. A petal from their rose wilted and fell onto the ground before them.  
_Hush little baby, don’t say a word…_  
Something snapped deep within, and there was an unresting, determined spark in their eyes. The madness that they had built up deep within their heart after years and years of living this way was straining for freedom.  
_Mama’s gonna buy you a mockingbird_  
Out of the corner of their eye, they spotted it- the dark sword. It was whispering something to Crona that almost sounded like a lullaby. It’s voice raspy and low, it was calling out for them, wanting to be released and put to use. The glass reflected the light traveling into the room through the crack in the door as it smashed and scattered, millions of pieces raining down onto the carpet. Crona’s fist gripped the handle as it was forcibly wrenched from its display.  
_And if that mockingbird don’t sing_  
Their footsteps were silent in the hallway.  
_Mama’s gonna buy you a diamond ring_  
Medusa was hunched over the table now, wine splattered on her dress. She was murmuring to herself.  
_And if that diamond ring turns brass_  
Crona’s face was shadowed by the deepest turmoil. All of their thorns grew outward in painful tangles, wrapping around their arms and neck. The rose opened up, searching for sunlight.  
_Mama’s gonna buy you a looking glass_  
In an instant, the blade slid right through Medusa’s torso and popped out the other end, jamming into the table.  
_And if that looking glass is broke_  
Medusa didn’t even scream-it got lodged in her throat- she only gagged and coughed up blood. The sword was ripped out of her back and blood splattered across the smooth wooden surface.  
_Mama’s gonna buy you a billy goat_  
A whisper, “Kurona?”  
_And if that billy goat won’t pull_  
Crona grimaced, eyes blown wide. An unspeakable fear soared through their veins.  
_Mama’s gonna buy you a cart and bull_  
“Mother.”  
_And if that cart and bull turn over_  
Her neck craned, getting a better view of her own child standing there with her blood on their hands.  
_Mama’s gonna buy you a dog named Rover._  
“You’ve finally done it. This was your destiny, I knew it.” Cold tears streamed down her face, contradicted by the most wicked smile. She laughed, the sound gurgling up from her throat.  
“No.” Crona stuttered, “No, no, no.”  
_And if that dog named Rover won’t bark_  
“No, no, NO! You knew!? This is what I was made for!? It can’t happen! IT CAN’T!”  
_Mama’s gonna buy you a horse and cart_  
Crona’s heartbeat pounded heavily in their ears, like someone imprisoned deep within them knocking on the inside to get out.  
_And if that horse and cart fall down_  
“Do you think it’s funny that I’m afraid of you, afraid of my flowers, afraid of myself!? Well I’ve been afraid, just like you fucking _wanted_!”  
_You’ll still be the sweetest little baby in town_  
The blade ripped through Medusa’s side and dashed dark blood onto the carpet, droplets flowing down the glass ruins. Her arms came off next, both sliced off and dropped to the floor. As a final touch, Crona drove the sword straight through her throat.  
_So, hush little baby, don’t you cry_  
Her body sprawled out onto the table, the last of Medusa’s life gone.  
_Papa loves you and so do I_  
Crona straightened, eyes murky and listless.  
“Maka. Her name was Maka.”  
**************************************************************  
The flickers of from the sun scattered across Crona’s face like starlight. As the door creaked open, Crona’s thorns began twisting and retracting. During the few days that Crona was laying there, unable to comprehend what they had done, the thorns had coiled out across the room, into the darkest corners, soaking up the blood like a leech and anchoring Crona in the middle.  
Crona squinted from the sudden brightness. A rather tall, buff man was standing in the doorway, armed with a large knife.  
“Who… are you?” Crona’s own voice didn’t sound human to them.  
“We’re not going to hurt you… Uh!” The man noticed the deep red stains and the door flew open, exposing the corpse. It lay slumped against the table, one arm laying unattached on the ground. All of the carnations were now dead, the petals sprinkled around the carpet.  
Another man appeared at the door, who was stopped by the knife-wielder’s arm.  
“Stay back, someone’s here!”  
The other man gaped.  
“Sid, is that-“  
“It’s Medusa,” Sid shined a flashlight on the body, “There’s no doubt about it.”  
Crona fidgeted and curled themselves out of the position they were in on the floor, moving towards the light. They heard a shout-  
“Alright, everybody initiate the operation! Do as we planned, and take the kid into custody without hurting them!”  
Crona, barely teetering on consciousness, only felt themselves being lifted and placed onto a soft surface.  
They murmured to themselves, “I… killed something. I don’t remember what it was though.”  
**************************************************************  
“Hmmmmm…”  
Lord Death brought a hand up to his head, thinking.  
“So, you’re saying that this child belongs to Medusa Gorgon, one of the Gorgon sisters, and that they murdered Medusa with the sword _**Ragnarok?”**_  
Sid confirmed, “Yes, sir, as far as we know, they did. We found the child there while we were breaking into Medusa’s hideout after locating it- “  
“You’re nursing the kid back to health, yeah?”  
“Uh… yeah, of course. They were previously fading in and out of consciousness, but seem to be more stable now. We were worried that they would be violent once they realized where they were, but they’re only really expressing confusion about what’s going on around them.”  
Lord Death hummed, “So, a Gorgon… a family that has such a long history of resisting the academy and police force, and now one of them is in our safekeeping…”  
The headmaster shrugged, long vines waving about.  
“Well that’s no good. Can’t exactly give a relative custody.”  
Sid watched this one-sided conversation, puzzled, and eventually spoke up.  
“Ahem,” Sid cleared his throat, “Uh, Lord Death. If I may, I think sending them to the academy would be the best thing for them. There’s something about them that’s so similar to this place and the other students that makes me think they would fit in here. But we don’t yet know how dangerous this kid actually is, because they were capable of killing their mother, or at least that’s what we believe. Lord Death?”  
Lord Death only thought for a brief moment.  
“Hmmmmm…. Yep, let’s do it!”  
“Wait, just like that?”  
“Uhhh, yah, just like that,” Lord Death said, “You’ve convinced me! They will be a great addition to the academy, and they should find it to be quite welcoming in Death City!”  
**************************************************************  
Death city is the one true place for the profoundly bold, running wild with untamed youth and blinding shadows. The streetlights course up the road like a river, stopping to flash forward with their deep glare and lead the way for all the lost souls headed toward the city center. The highest point houses the academy, complete with all of the stone cool lockers and phantom hallways a high school has to offer. This particular high school also offers combat classes, and the chance to protect the order of reality as we know it.  
In the topmost reaches of the school, there’s a balcony that looks out over the shaded buildings. One can almost see as far as the deserted city limits, faded concrete merging with a sandy wasteland. At the very edge of this, there is a small lab sporting steel doors and artificial stitches. Inside, there’s a room with various medical equipment, green curtains, and a snoozing child.  
Crona awoke suddenly, with a snake-like feeling slithering up their spine. They observed their surroundings, the white, the coolness of the sheets, the blinding sterilization and strong smell of rubbing alcohol in the air. They heaved, noting that nothing had changed since the few other times they had regained their consciousness.  
They heard a sudden noise beside them, like something got bumped, and craned their head to see. A man, who looked focused on what he was fiddling with and brushing some unknown substance onto his dirty lab coat, was crouched down at a desk to the right of the bed. Crona strained to pull themselves upright, feeling their entire body scream in protest.  
“Uh, uhh…”  
The man slowly turned around- Crona observed the massive screw suck in his head- and blinked rapidly, like he’d been staring at one thing for the past several hours.  
“Oh,” he commented, “You’re awake.”  
He lifted himself from his position at the desk and examined Crona for a moment, crouching down to study their eyes and checking the IV on their arm.  
“I’m still not sure… what’s happening. Who are all- all of you people and… h-huhh-how did I get here?” Crona suddenly recalled the others who had taken them from their home and to the lab. They remembered several faces staring down at them throughout the past few days, but couldn’t identify any of them. It was all so hazy.  
“Can you tell me your name?” The doctor asked, reaching for some equipment. Some thistles poked out from underneath his lab coat.  
“K-Kur…” they hesitated, mulling over it for a second.  
“Crona… Gorgon.”  
The doctor frowned.  
“Just so you know, I’m Dr. Stein. I’m going to ask you a few more questions. I know these might be difficult to answer, but just do your best.” Stein busied himself with examining files.  
“First off, what’s your mother’s name?”  
Crona’s eyes grew wide and they focused their gaze on the plain, white sheets. They clawed at them slightly, feeling their shaking, rattling bones underneath their skin, with all of the scars littering the top.  
“Mmm-m.”  
“Yes?”  
“Medusa. That was her name.” Their voice was filled with venom, they spit out her name like a curse.  
“Now, Crona, I want you to concentrate hard for me, and tell me what happened that led up to this point. Whatever you remember about how your mother…”  
Crona interjected, “About how my mother was murdered. I killed her.” Crona gagged, fighting for some sort of control over their emotions. Their vision flashed with the lucid memory of their mother being cut in half. They trembled and shifted their position.  
“I stabbed her. Oh my god, I killed her.” Crona’s breath came out in choked gasps, hot tears rolling down their cheeks.  
“Crona, I need you to calm down. Breathe. And focus.”  
“Huuuh… I did this? With my own two hands? It wasn’t just a dream?” Crona looked to Stein for confirmation, almost smiling, chuckling as if it was funny.  
“I shouldn’t have brought this up yet. It’s too soon.” Stein sighed.  
His hand came down to rest on Crona’s head, who froze.  
“I’m going to let you get more rest in a bit, but for now I need you to cooperate while I test your blood.”  
While he got the vial and needle ready, Crona slowed their breathing, burying their face in their hands.  
“S-Stein?” Crona felt a few more tears leak out.  
“Do you know… uhh… what’s going to happen to me after… this?” They muttered.  
“Listen, they debated what they were going to do with you, and they decided on an education at the academy. In normal circumstances, you’d be put on trial for your crimes, but Medu- eh, your mother was a wicked criminal we’ve been trying to eliminate for years, so we’re letting you off the hook.” Stein explained.  
He then muttered, “That’s too bad, though, I could have had another subject to experiment on…”  
“Wha…”  
“Oh, nothing. Just a joke.” His smile was unnerving.  
“Now, this is going to hurt a bit, but it’s necessary.”  
Crona shuddered but held still as Stein drew a few vials of blood.  
“Your blood color has almost returned to normal… it’s good that it didn’t get to the point of hypoxemia, but it may need to be treated every few weeks…” Stein mumbles to himself.  
“Um, what?” Crona questioned, “What treated?”  
“Oh, your red blood cell count is unnaturally high, so I’m thinking it might be polycythemia, but I’m not quite sure yet. Don’t worry about it.”  
Crona, of course, began to worry about it, grabbing at their arm and shivering as Stein went into the other room to begin testing Crona’s blood.  
Crona’s eyes shot around the open room, taking in every detail they could in their half-drowsy state. There were several other white beds, all made up and smoothed neatly. The LED light above was flickering every few seconds. Across the room, there was a large window with curtains, which were billowing slowly from the nighttime breeze. On the desk, there was a rectangular frame holding a picture of a blonde woman, who was beaming as her bell-shaped flowers gusted around in the morning light.  
“The academy, huh…”  
Crona’s eyes began to droop, exhausted by all the operations and nightmares that finally seemed to be coming to an end. They slowly contemplated what would await them in a few days’ time. Crona wasn’t even quite sure what an academy was, but they recalled their mother mentioning it, before…  
_“Kurona.”_  
Crona’s bloodshot eyes snapped open, alarmed by the drifting voice. It was without a doubt their mother’s.  
“What… where-“  
Medusa suddenly dropped upside down from the ceiling, her legs hanging onto some invisible force, her limbs stretching out to violently grab Crona’s face. Her carnations, turned pitch black, dropped and scattered across the room.  
Crona screamed in terror, wrenching themselves from her grasp and throwing themselves off the side of the bed to try to get away.  
“Mother! NO! DON’T TOUCH ME!” They screeched and lashed out, their fingers passing right through her.  
The nearby door slammed open, followed by Stein rushing through in a panic.  
“What happened!? Are you hurt!?”  
Crona’s head swiveled back around only to see nothing in front of them, the ghost of their mother completely gone.  
“It was… where did…”  
Crona stuttered as Stein helped them back onto the bed, checking their body for injuries.  
“I think I’m…I think I’m imagining things.”  
“Hm. That makes two of us.” Stein remarked quietly.  
“Huh?” Crona looked to Stein in a panic.  
“Listen… Crona.” He gently grabbed their shoulders, urging Crona to look at him.  
“I know you’re probably scared, and worried about what’s to come, but if you can, trust that none of us are going to hurt you. We only want to help.”  
Crona nodded, their head fogging up, a drowsy feeling seeping in. The last thing they remember before they passed out was glancing back over to the picture of the blonde woman and imagining the bright sun overhead.  
**************************************************************  
“Well, here’s the entrance to the academy. I guess I should say ‘welcome home’ or something like that.” Sid scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. Sid’s flowers, poking out from under his tank top, were bright yellow and orange banksias that crisscrossed in every direction.  
“Are you sure an academy is the place for me to go? I’m just not sure about this really.” Crona looked up at the morning light glinting off of the massive skulls. To any new student, the school looked intimidating as hell, but it was especially scary to Crona. The academy was too far up in the clouds, unreachable. It sat up with the sun, both terrifying beacons.  
Wiping at the sweat on their forehead, Crona grumbled.  
“It’s so hot… do I really have to climb the stairs like this every day?” Their flower wilted a bit, resting on the top of their head like a child getting a piggy-back ride.  
“You’ll get used to it,” Sid’s enormous hand ruffled Crona’s hair with a bit too much force. Crona flinched back and stepped away a bit.  
“Time to go.” Sid started up the staircase.  
A small cluster of girls, three to be exact, was hanging out near the top of the stairs. They seemed to be arguing, or at least one of them was upset about something.  
“I keep telling you, I need just as much practice with her as my partner during the two on two rounds as you do! You can’t have her as your partner every time!” The girl with the long, silky blonde hair sputtered indignantly, stamping her foot.  
The smallest of the three, sporting black pigtails, exhaled, “I know, I’m sorry, I’ll try to remember next time…”  
As Crona and Sid approached the girls, Crona faltered.  
“Oh, there’s uh- there’s people here.”  
“Yes, of course there are, the academy is full of students.”  
“Everywhere?”  
Sid sighed, almost nudging Crona forward to get them moving again.  
“Yes, it’s a pretty big school. It’s full of a bunch of students around your age. You should be able to find someone you get along with, so don’t worry.”  
Crona nearly whimpered and kept climbing the stairs, but noticed that the group of girls had seen them, and were now whispering to each other.  
“Who’s that? Do you think it’s a new student?” An excitement seemed to buzz amongst them.  
Crona winced, “Uhh. They’re looking at me. What do I do?”  
“Oh, it’s a perfect chance for you to make friends. How about you go talk to them?”  
Sid’s hand lightly shoved them forward, and Crona was suddenly facing the group, the girl with pigtails way too close for comfort. She had a little stem poking out at the top of her head, which looked like it could bloom any day now.  
She gaped, “You ARE new, you look just as scared as I was when I first got here.” She smiled sweetly, not really thinking through her words completely, but meaning well.  
“But don’t worry! There’s nothing to be concerned about here, it’s a wonderful place!”  
Crona stared at her in utter confusion. Why on earth was she talking to them and why was she so friendly right off the bat?  
“Umm… well, I-“  
“Oh, class is going to start soon. Sorry, but we’d better go.” Sid interjected, his eyes on his watch, and led Crona away toward the entrance.  
“Hey!”  
“Wha-“ Crona looked back toward the girls to see the one with pigtails waving frantically.  
“By the way, I’m Tsugumi, and I hope we can become friends!”  
**************************************************************  
Sid stepped into the classroom, leading Crona inside.  
“I’m going to have someone show you around after class,” Sid glanced around the classroom.  
“Where is she anyway? Class is about to start… Maka! Maka Albarn!”  
Crona stiffened at the name. A girl popped her head up from amidst her group of friends on the other side of the classroom.  
“Yes? Oh, professor Sid!”  
The girl jogged over with a spring in her step. Yes, this was definitely the same Maka. Her blonde pigtails and soft green eyes had not changed, after all those years. Her flowers, though, had grown and come to a full bloom. Vibrant astilbes of all different colors cascaded around her body. With so many pinks, purples, reds, and yellows, it seemed like an endless range of hues fluttering around.  
Crona was completely dumbfounded, staring wide-eyed with their mouth hanging open as she slowed to a halt in front of them.  
“You needed me- Oh! Who’s this?”  
“This is a new student. I thought you would be the best person to show them around later.”  
Maka’s grin was blinding. “Sure, no problem! My name is Maka, what’s yours?” She looked at Crona expectantly.  
“I… I- Uh… Crona.”  
Maka’s face showed a hint of recognition.  
“Wait…” She blinked, “Crona?”  
Everything Crona could have said in that moment caught in their throat. They could only gape at her, probably looking like a dead fish.  
The bell cut them off and all of the students scrambled for their seats. Maka motioned for Crona to follow her and led them up to her bench. They hurriedly sat down beside her.  
Everyone was getting settled and taking out their books when they heard a terrified shriek coming from out in the hallway. They sat there in confusion as they listened to the commotion going on outside the door before the teacher entered, looking shaken.  
“Nothing to worry about, just a little spider. I had Stein take care of it for me.” She forced a smile and quickly walked to her desk. The teacher had long, wavy blonde hair with white Canterbury bells braided through it. They bounced slightly as she walked; she moved a bit awkwardly due to her large baby bump that was obviously in its later stages.  
“OK!” She clapped her hands together. “Let’s get started! Oh, and we have a new student!” She glanced up at the seating.  
“Your name is…” her eyes scanned the page on the desk in front of her, “Crona Gorgon?”  
The class stirred. Groups of students started muttering. Crona’s ears picked up on several things.  
“…I heard about them…”  
“…yeah, news travels fast…”  
“…killed their own mother…”  
“…the kid with the pitch-black roses. What a disgrace…”  
Crona began to shake, curled in with their hands grasping at their sleeves. They looked to Maka, who offered a comforting smile.  
They cleared their throat, “Y-yeah. That’s right.”  
“My name is Ms. Mjolnir, but you can just call me Marie, if you’d like. Would you like to introduce yourself to the class?” Marie offered.  
Crona froze.  
“Uh… no…” Crona mumbled, “No.”  
“Alright, that’s fine!”  
Crona sighed heavily, feeling defeated as they slumped into their chair, staring down at their hands. They were quivering even more heavily now, and getting the sudden urge to fade out of reality.  
“Ok, let’s begin the lecture then! We’ll be continuing where we left off yesterday.” Marie took a moment to open her laptop.  
“Now, as we know, our flowers represent our life force, the driving force behind our mind, body, and soul. We can lose some of our flowers without it affecting the body- but once a certain amount are removed, it can affect our mental condition and physical health.”  
Marie pulled up an image on the projector- a greenhouse filled with flowers.  
“Because small amounts of flowers can be detached, scientists have been able to plant clippings and grow them separately from the person. They’ve been examined for special properties, but they have not been proven to be different from regular flowers.”  
Crona picked up on a dark chuckle from behind them, and slowly turned before a white-haired boy caught their eye. He had his feet propped up on the table and was smirking, revealing sharp teeth.  
“Any questions?”  
Maka raised her hand, and Crona whipped back around and tried to sink into the chair.  
“Yes, Maka?”  
“All of our flowers have different meanings, right? Can you explain more about what that means?”  
“Yes, of course!”  
“There is actually an official online database that explains what the flowers mean in detail. For example,” Marie typed “Canterbury bells” into the search bar of the website, “The symbolism behind my flowers is ‘Gratitude.’ I try to always be thankful for what I have because of this.” Her hand unconsciously passed over her stomach.  
“There are always going to be people across the world with the same types of flowers as you, and you may have encountered people with the same type already, due to some being more common than others.” Marie’s eyes focused on Crona.  
“I wonder…” Marie entered “black rose” into her computer, catching Crona’s attention. They actually wished that they could just descend down under the desk and disappear right about now.  
The search, strangely enough, generated no results whatsoever.  
“Huh, that’s strange…” Marie pondered, then smiled at Crona.  
“Well, you must just be a special case! How unique!”  
**************************************************************  
Crona followed Maka around to every class throughout the day, miraculously being given the same schedule as her. They didn’t know what to say to her, so they kept quiet as they trudged through the hallways, semi-dreading the end of the day when they knew they would have to go back to the single dorm room they were assigned. It was nice and all, with a wide-open space and a soft bed, but they just felt like something would go terribly wrong if they were left alone. Every horrible thought would crawl back into their mind, scratching and demanding entrance. They felt one of their thorns twitch.  
“Crona?”  
Crona looked up from where they were following behind Maka. They had subconsciously been keeping four feet away from her as she led them around. Maka stepped toward them to try to bridge the gap.  
“Hey, I know that…” Maka exhaled, “That we probably have some things to talk about, things like what has happened and all, but don’t worry about it for now, okay?”  
Crona let her edge closer, feeling her subtle warmth and brush of the fabric on her arm against their shoulder.  
“I-I..”  
“Yes?”  
“It- It’s you. You’re Maka. It is really you, isn’t it?”  
Maka tilted her head in confusion, a faint smile growing on her lips.  
“Of course, it’s me, silly, what do you mean?”  
“Yo, what’s up, Maka?” A hand patted Maka’s shoulder and squeezed.  
Maka squinted upwards and saw a tall girl with long, dirty blonde hair and her signature bootcut jeans towering over her. Here daisies were beautifully white, perking up and wisping around.  
“Oh, Liz!” Maka greeted her.  
“And Patty!” Liz’s shorter sister exclaimed, jumping out from behind the corner, with her sunflower swaying in midair. “What are you still doing here, Maka, our last class ended like 20 minutes ago.”  
“Oh, just showing Crona around. I figured they would need a lot of help with navigating the school.”  
“Crona, huh? I saw you this morning, you seem like an alright kid.” Liz held up her fist. Crona stared at it, worried.  
Liz exhaled, “Hmm. C’mon, a fist bump? Don’t leave me hanging.”  
Patty creeped up and gently took Crona’s hand, curling it into a fist. Liz took a step forward and lightly bumped her fist with theirs.  
Patty dropped Crona’s arm and threw her hands into the air.  
_**“Yaaaaaaay for you, you did it!”**_ Patty squealed, trying her best to be supportive.  
Meanwhile, Crona was nearly dissociating.  
“So, Maka.” Liz leaned in.  
“Are we still hanging out after school? Tsubaki made some pumpkin pie, and everyone has to try it, it’s totally sweet... I might have stolen a tiny piece while she wasn’t looking.”  
“Oh yeah, of course!” Maka glanced around, “I don’t know where Soul went, he was supposed to wait for me so we could go pick up some coffee.”  
“We keep running out cause he’s drinking so much every morning,” she complained. “He’s not getting much sleep at night.”  
“Sounds tough, is he okay?”  
“I hope so. Oh yeah, about that,” Maka’s outstretched hand reached toward Crona, nearly jabbing them in the face, “Would you like to come to my place after school? We’re all hanging out there, it would give you a chance to meet everyone.”  
Crona knew this was their chance to stay out of their dorm room later, to not have to be left alone. A nagging feeling told them they won’t accept you, but they shoved it to the back of their conscious, putting in their best effort to finally form a coherent sentence.  
“Yes. That sounds… wonderful.”  
Crona accepted Maka’s stretched out hand, and they felt something bloom.  
Patty jolted and looked at something above Crona’s head, “Whoa, that’s so cool!”  
Maka gaped, pointing out what she was looking at to Crona.  
Alongside Crona’s black rose, something else had blossomed- A bright yellow rose, curling up and bursting open like a sunrise.  
“Oh.” Crona said, breathlessly, and craned their head, trying to get a better glimpse, “Oh, uh, it’s never done that before,” Crona looked down bashfully.  
Maka stepped toward Crona, lacing her fingers with theirs, “It’s beautiful.”  
Crona blushed madly.  
“No- it’s not, not really. Well, maybe I’m just sick of the thorns…”  
“I mean it.”  
Caught off guard by how ridiculously soft her voice was, they could only keep their eyes on Maka’s hand, which seemed to fit perfectly into theirs.  
Maka spotted a clock on the wall, pulling her hand away from Crona’s to their dismay.  
“Is it that late already? I’d better go look for Soul. Um, here, Crona, I’ll give you the address and try to explain how to get there, it’s not hard to find.”  
**************************************************************  
“Sister.”  
A scorpion skittered along the ice-cold wall, coming to rest in a petite hand with stubby nails and an abundance of rings.  
“Yes, Arachne? You called for me?” The young lady’s voice was threaded with mischief.  
Arachne’s nightshades were her proudest feature, which she flaunted and took special care to take care of them and made sure they looked on point every day. Her sister’s begonias, though, appeared much more ruffled about, one of the many aspects about Shaula that bothered Arachne.  
“You’ve already heard the news of Medusa’s death?”  
“Yes, unfortunately, I have.” Shaula approached her sister.  
“You don’t know who killed her, do you?”  
“No, it was not explained to me-“  
Arachne held up her hand to silence her. Rising from her dark velveteen chair, she strode over to her sister’s side and ran her hand along a frame on the wall.  
“You remember Medusa’s odd fear… children.” She flicked away some dust.  
“Oh my… I do! But you don’t think…”  
Arachne chuckled darkly, “I remember when we were young and she would shy away from others, keeping even her own sisters at a distance, choosing the comfort of a dark room and solitude over the company of others her age.  
“By the time we were nearly grown, Mother made it clear that she expected all of us to have children, to further the Gorgon bloodline. Medusa’s rage filled outbursts were one of the many things that haunted me in the middle of the night.”  
“Arachne.”  
Arachne turned, meeting her sister’s eyes.  
“What was Medusa’s child’s name? I cannot seem to remember.”  
“Ah, what was it? Oh, that’s it.”  
Shaula strolled back over to her chair, and began digging in the drawer next to it, pulling out several faded photographs and flipping through them.  
She finally held one up. Medusa was the most prominent subject in the photo, making threatening eye contact with the camera. But in her claws, she held a baby, which had already been scratched across the face and was crying incessantly.  
“Kurona.”  
Arachne set the photos down.  
“Come, sister. We have some investigating to do.”  
**************************************************************  
It was the same as always. He’s dressed in a pinstripe suit, blood-red shirt underneath, sitting in a wooden chair. The record on the table skipped.  
The demon entered, as always, snapping his fingers to the broken beat.  
Soul scoffed, “So, you’re back, I get it, what sort of knowledge do you have to lay on me this time, you gross little piece of shit?”  
The demon backed up, feigning terror.  
“Oh, don’t be like that,” the Demon spoke quietly, but his voice carried throughout the entire room, “I’ve only come to ask you a question.”  
Soul looked slightly perplexed. He glanced down at his poppies- oranges and reds poking up through his suit. He sighed and gave in.  
“Huhh, alright, but make it quick, I’ve got some watering to do.”  
The demon leered.  
“Tell me, Soul, what is a thing?”  
“The hell?” Soul grabbed at his suit jacket, his poppies brushing against his fingers.  
“Just answer the question.”  
“I honestly have no idea what you mean.”  
“Your piano may just be an object to some,” he motioned to the other side of the room, and the curtains parted, presenting a grand piano, “But to you, it’s a thing filled with memories of your troubled past. It’s overrun with secrets.”  
“Shut up,” Soul could barely manage to choke out, scowling and staring at the tiles on the floor.  
“Every time you use it, it just becomes more and more important. And every time you refuse to use it, dare I say, it gets more important also, but in a different way than if you were playing it. The piano catches your eye, sometimes in the corner of a room, an old café, a ritzy hotel, a concert hall, a back alley, and your further experience with it only enhances the thingness of the thing.”  
“Slow down, you’re not making any sense.”  
“Take a window, for example.”  
A window appeared, floating in space. Soul felt himself automatically get up and walk over to it like a robot that couldn’t resist its programmer.  
The bright sun shone through the panes, mimicking a real window. Outside, he saw the view from his room-a twisted road, the apartment buildings, the stretching towers. He gripped the ledge of the window and grumbled.  
“So, what’s your point? I only see what’s normally out there.”  
“Look again.”  
“Huh?” Soul did, and recoiled at the sudden coldness on his hands.  
The clear glass window began to build up dirt, as if time was moving in fast motion, showing the unforgiveness of many years. It only got cloudier and cloudier.  
“What do you see now, Soul?”  
“Ugh, not much, all the dirt and shit is getting in the way.”  
“You see, now you’ve noticed the window as something more, instead of just an object to look through. It’s inconveniencing you, isn’t it.”  
Soul looked over his shoulder at the demon angrily.  
“Yeah, so what?!”  
The demon waved his hand. “Just keep your eyes on the city.”  
Death City looked the same for a moment, but then began to change. It was slowly disintegrating, its buildings filthy and uninhabitable, the streets torn up, trash scattered about. The sky was impossibly grey.  
“W-what the fuck?”  
“Surprise, surprise, Soul. Nothing is going to stay the way you see it forever. Destruction of society is inevitable. In fact, it seems to be already floating away- in a place like this, progress is never made, things almost seem to move forward but then just bounce back to the way they were. People are simple and without ambition- endlessly running around in circles in their own minds. This is your world, Soul.”  
Soul swallowed, his finger tapping on the windowsill and reverberating throughout the room.  
“To change… is a violent process. There are going to be a lot of changes very soon.” The Demon said, walking over to Soul’s side.  
“Now, tell me, Soul, is a dream a thing?”  
“No way in hell. They’re not important to me. I would never have a dream again for all I care.”  
“Ah, but here’s where you’re wrong. Dreams have much more of a meaning to you besides just a distraction during the night- they hold everything you are, they’re overflowing with your fears, Soul Evans.” His voice became darker.  
“Your dreams are different from the dreams of other people. They’re something tangible, we both know that.” The demon’s hand came to rest on a flower pot. A small astilbe clipping poked up from the dirt.  
“N-no, don’t touch them!”  
“Why would I, I was the one who suggested you plant them in the first place, remember? I know it’s nice for you to have a piece of your friends here with you, it must be so hard.”  
The pots were arranged with no rhyme or reason on the floor in the corner, the black curtain almost draping over them. The biggest one held the astilbe clipping. Another smaller one, next to it, contained a pink camellia. Next to that one was a square container, holding a small cluster of red cosmos and a blue hyacinth, bursting with color. The last pot held a sunflower and a daisy, huddling together.  
The Demon’s hand disappeared behind the assortment of pots and lifted up a tiny, black vessel. The detailed glass ornamentation resembled thorns and gears, turning and twisting together.  
“It looks like something new has appeared.” The Demon reached his hand out.  
Soul let the Demon pass the tiny pot to him. He inspected it more, noting the fresh dirt already inside, waiting.  
“Why’s it so small?” he held it in his hand delicately, like it would smash if he so much as fidgeted.  
“Oh, it could be a lot of reasons- low self confidence or a lack of warmth throughout the life. Now, listen.” The demon said, and Soul looked at him, a spirit of a flame burning through his eyes.  
“What are your friends to you, Soul? Are they living, breathing people, or are they simply flowers to keep you company in your darkest times? It’s amazing what your head can do while it’s filled with nothing but dreams. Rather strange, isn’t it? Do you want to keep dreaming, Soul? Soul?”  
“…Soul… Soul!”  
“Soul, stop napping, everyone’s here!”  
“Huh-“ Soul was suddenly laying in his bed, still fully clothed from school. He had gone home immediately and flopped down to take a brief doze, exhausted because of his lack of sleep that week.  
“Uh... yeah! I’m coming!” Soul gripped his head, trying to calm his intense headache, and forced himself up. He jolted and looked over to his windowsill, realizing what had just happened in his dream. The black pot had materialized next to the rest of the plants.  
“Thanks to you, I had to go pick up coffee myself.” Maka yelled from outside the door as she was passing by.  
“Geez, I feel awful…”  
The smell of coffee filled the apartment, the cozy, afternoon sun cast harsh shadows inside.  
“I had that same dream again.”  
Maka handed him his coffee.  
“The one with the-“  
“Yeah, the black room and the…” He trailed off.  
“I-I’m sorry.”  
Soul sighed, “Don’t apologize.” He paused for a moment.  
“But there was something new this time. Another pot appeared. Small and fragile looking, but… intricate.”  
Maka eyes almost widened with realization when Black Star burst out of the bathroom.  
“Is that COFFEE? I’m fucking THIRSTY.”  
Maka groaned and got up off the couch to make sure Black Star wasn’t going to smash her favorite large mug while trying to pour coffee.  
Soul closed his eyes and tried to relieve a bit of tension before turning his attention toward Tsubaki, who was curled up quietly in the chair. Her camellias seemed to be curling up with her, nuzzling into the warmest parts of her body. Blair the kitten looked perfectly content with snuggling into Tsubaki’s lap also. Tsubaki straightened and smiled softly.  
“Are… you okay, Soul?”  
“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” He looked uncertain. He bit his lip. “You don’t have to worry about it. It’s nothing bad.”  
Tsubaki appeared conflicted but nodded, clearing her throat.  
“Um… how is your garden going?”  
Soul suddenly looked a bit more at ease.  
“Great,” he chuckled, “Uh, it’s going good? I still can’t get them to grow, but, uh, they haven’t withered yet, which I think is a good sign.”  
“No, Black Star, don’t-“  
Black Star bounded into the living area and flopped onto the other couch, holding an overflowing cup of coffee with at least 10 spoonfuls of sugar in it. He spilled some onto himself but payed no mind, setting it onto the coffee table.  
“YO! When’s Kid gonna get here, I need to give him a piece of my mind for doing better than me on the quiz yesterday.” He cracked his knuckles. His hyacinths popped up, alert.  
“Dude, he always does better than you. In every class.”  
“Not in the combat class!” Black Star protested, flexing. “I can beat him up, it’s gonna happen soon, trust me.”  
“Uhh, I wouldn’t be so sure…” Soul trailed off and sipped his coffee, thinking of how Kid completely annihilated Black Star a week before by slamming his face into the ground.  
The doorbell rang. Maka huffed and stomped over to the door, and the moment she opened it, she was attacked by a flying creature.  
“Heyooooo!” Patty tackled Maka and wrapped her arms around her shoulders, snuggling into her. Her sunflower coiled itself around Maka’s arm.  
Maka patted her on the back, grinning slightly.  
“Hey there, Patty.”  
Liz popped her head in.  
“Sorry we’re late, Kid had to stop and rearrange a fruit stand.”  
She stepped in and pried Patty off of Maka before spotting Tsubaki, who waved at her. She shot across the room and curled up next to Tsubaki, looking content, with her daisies perking up.  
“Hi,” Tsubaki brushed Liz’s hair behind her ear.  
Liz breathed out. “Hi.”  
“Black Star.”  
Everyone turned their attention to the entrance, as a perfectly shined black shoe hit the floor. Red cosmos waved about slightly, both sides arranged in a pattern that perfectly mirrored each other.  
“So, you’ve finally come, huh, Kid?” Black Star answered darkly.  
“Prepare… to taste my fist!” In a brief flash, Black Star had lunged out, initiating the fight. Kid dodged easily and brought his elbow down onto Black Star’s skull. He jumped onto the couch with ease, preparing for Black Star’s next move.  
“Hey, no fair! Get back here!” Black Star sprung into the air and aimed a kick at Kid’s head. Missing again, he was knocked down, but recovered quickly. He grumbled.  
“Hey, not in the apartment, you guys! I don’t want something else getting smashed!” Maka protested, as if this was a normal occurrence.  
Black Star’s fist hit the wall next to Kid’s head, narrowly missing him, but leaving a nice hole. They stared each other down, precariously close. Kid licked his bottom lip.  
“You’re just going to have to accept that you can never beat me, Black Star, no matter how many times you challenge me,” he murmured, a sly smile playing on his lips.  
Black Star’s voice was low for once, “I won’t admit that until I’ve tried everything I possibly can.”  
They held each other’s gaze for a moment longer, before being interrupted by a timid knock on the door.  
“Uh… hello? Am I in the right place…” their voice carried over from behind the wall.  
Maka’s face lit up, and she sprinted to the entry way, nearly tripping over at least 10 things in the process. The door was flung open lightning fast.  
“Crona! It’s you!”  
“Am- am I late? I’m sorry.”  
“No-no, you’re right on time!” Maka’s face flushed and she flailed her hands about, “Come on!” she reached for Crona’s wrist and grabbed it tightly, dragging them inside and letting them take a seat on the couch tentatively. Black Star and Kid had separated, Kid straightening his clothes and Black Star scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.  
Maka let Crona get settled as she brought them a small cup of coffee, the mug decorated with floral patterns and proudly proclaiming “hug in a mug” on the side. She also set sugar and cream down on the table, not knowing what sort of preference they had. Of course, Crona had never actually tried coffee before, and they took a cautious sip. Their face contorted violently as a little bit spilt past their lips and sloshed onto their dress. They reached for the chocolate flavored creamer.  
“Everyone, this is Crona! We were actually childhood friends. It seems crazy that I’ve found them again.”  
“I’m Tsubaki. It’s very nice to meet you.” She offered a smile, and her camellias seemed to wave in greeting.  
Blair got up from her spot on Tsubaki’s lap and stretched, yawning, a little mewl escaping her mouth.  
“Oh, and that’s my cat, Blair. We adopted her just a few months ago.” Maka remarked.  
“You should recognize me!” Black Star had positioned himself on the back of the couch, looming over Crona, a finger pointing upward.  
“I am the great future assassin Black Star and everyone in the whole world will soon know my name!”  
Crona winced at his name for a reason they couldn’t quite grasp.  
“Uh, no,” Crona shifted away from him, “Sorry, I don’t know you.”  
Tsubaki coaxed Black Star down from the top of the couch, “I apologize for him, he’s always like this.”  
“Tsubaki-“  
“Black Star, please don’t make people uncomfortable…” Tsubaki lectured him like a thoughtful mother trying to control her rowdy kid.  
“You met Liz and Patty earlier.” Crona was met with Liz’s offhanded wave and Patty flapping her arms about in a matter that seemed friendly.  
“Ahem.”  
“My name is Kid. Some people call me Death the Kid, but I don’t expect you to. No one else here keeps up that sort of formality. I hope you’ll excuse how disorderly and loud this group always is, you don’t seem like the type to be needlessly obnoxious.” He then whispered under his breath, “Unlike someone I know.” Black Star looked oblivious.  
“His dad is the headmaster of the school!” Patty interjected.  
“And, uh,” Maka gestured toward the other couch, “This is Soul. We share this apartment, we’ve been best friends for a few years now.”  
Soul looked up from his mug and shot Crona a look that could either be interpreted as hesitantly welcoming or slightly threatening. Crona hoped it was the former.  
Maka chuckled lightly, trying to diffuse the situation.  
“Soul gets real tired a lot, so try not to blame him for being grumpy.” She glared at Soul, stomping over to swipe away his coffee he seemed to be so invested in.  
“Crona’s yellow rose just bloomed today, I saw it!” Patty suddenly yelled out, like she was trying to hold it in while everyone was being introduced.  
“Really?” Tsubaki’s interest seemed piqued, “Did you know that a yellow rose represents welcoming and friendship? Maybe Maka’s kindness is what caused it.”  
Maka paused her struggle with Soul and jerked up, flushing.  
“Well, uh, maybe.” She looked down uneasily, wringing her hands, searching for words, “…but I also think that your black rose is just as pretty.” She said, wholeheartedly.  
“It’s not pretty. I’m…” Crona breathed out, “I’m scared of it.” They admitted.  
“It terrifies me beyond anything I can explain.”  
The room suddenly grew tense, as if a wave of unspoken terror washed over everything.  
“Crona.” Kid snagged their attention, “I understand that you came from a rather rough background.”  
Crona nodded, and felt their thorns tense up. The yellow rose seemed to be wilting.  
“Has anyone ever spoken to you about phobias?”  
The entire room stared Crona down, solemn. They focused on a stain on the floor.  
“I’m not sure… what that is.”  
Kid looked to Maka, who nodded, and approached Crona slowly.  
“Everyone on this earth has a phobia. And…this phobia directly relates to what will kill the person.”  
Crona’s mind lit up with the memory of what their mother had told them. _You’ve finally done it. This was your destiny, I knew it._  
“W-wha- you mean, this happens to everybody, not just me?”  
“Yes, of course,” Maka’s hand rubbing up and down Crona’s arm was a comfort they didn’t know they needed.  
“For example, I’m afraid of,” her voice quivered. She leaned in, moving closer to Crona. Her voice was barely above a whisper.  
“I’m afraid of love.”  
“Ohhhh…”  
Crona’s mind examined everything it knew about the word love. It was a good feeling, right? Something that you’re supposed to feel when you’re around people that you care about, and that care about you? And Maka was scared of this feeling? It seemed unfortunate. Crona couldn’t think of anyone that could possibly feel love for them, not in any way. Their new friends- could Crona call them friends yet? - had only just been introduced to them, and their mother didn’t exactly cut it. Crona looked back to Maka, who was trying to smile in spite of just admitting something so deep and personal.  
“I guess if we’re talking about it, remember who has an obvious fear?” Black Star interjected, crossing his arms smugly.  
“Sid. He’s totally afraid of the statue of liberty. He basically vowed to never go to New York,” he shrugged, “And he avoids that one square in town. Y’know, the one with the giant statue?” He busted out laughing.  
“There was a kid just a few months ago,” Soul spoke up. Black Star went quiet, and the whole room looked to Soul in worry.  
“He was afraid of choking. He was biting his nails one day and, well…” he snickered. “Stupid motherfucker.”  
“ _Soul_.” Maka chided. Soul continued, not listening.  
“Then, there was this other one that I heard happened a few years ago. In the crescent moon class, just like us.”  
Everyone paused in anticipation.  
“They were skinned alive and slathered in Germ-x.”  
“Holy fuck.” Black Star whispered hoarsely.  
“Geez, I don’t want to talk about this anymore.” Maka excused herself and headed into the kitchen.  
“There’s some people I know who are only afraid of growing old. They’re the lucky ones.” Soul tapped at his mug, sinking back into the couch.  
Crona had to sit there and mull over what they had just heard for a few minutes. Could it… be possible? That they were afraid of the color _black_? They had previously considered roses, but no, the yellow rose hadn’t triggered any sort of fearful reaction in Crona, it only made them feel a little warmer inside. But- Black? Really? Could their true name- _Kurona_ -be connected to this? Everything Crona had experienced suddenly seemed to make sense.  
“Hey.” Soul called out from the opposite couch, staring right at Crona, his red eyes disturbingly piercing.  
Crona looked around. Everyone else had dissipated from the living area.  
“Me?” Crona motioned to themselves.  
He gestured to the spot beside him and Crona sat themselves down on the very edge of the cushion, nervous.  
“Try not to stress yourself out over what they just said.”  
“H-“  
“About the fear. Some people let it control their lives. It makes for a much cooler time if you don’t allow it to.”  
“Like me,” Soul began, “I happen to be afraid of dreams. I normally have the same kind over and over again. I could sit around all the time and wonder how dreams could eventually kill me, but I prefer not to.”  
“But Maka… don’t let that deter you from trying to be her friend. What she’s really afraid of is romantic love. Being in a relationship with someone and letting her guard down.”  
“She’s never really allowed herself to get very close to anyone,” Soul pauses, mulling over his next thought, “So far, I’m, um… the one that she’s put the most trust in? I’m her closest friend, but there are still times she won’t let me past certain barriers she’s set up.”  
Soul looked resigned, but smiled still.  
“But, it’s fine. She’s still my best friend I guess, so I just help her with what I can.”  
Their eyes both traveled to the kitchen, where Maka was humming as she poured herself a cup of tea.  
“Oh, by the way.”  
“U-Uh?”  
“I got something to ask you, just… don’t freak out, kay?”  
Crona nodded, swallowing nervously.  
“Can I have a piece of your rose?”  
“Wh-wha-“  
“Just like a clipping or something, nothing big.”  
“But, why?”  
“You’re our friend now, right? You’re part of the group. I have pieces from everyone’s flowers.”  
Crona considered this for a moment.  
“So? Whaddya say?”  
“I guess so.”  
Stretching, he set his coffee down and adjusted himself to get a better look at Crona’s thorns.  
“Oh, careful, I’m pokey.”  
Soul reached up and plucked a petal off the side of the large, black rose. Crona quivered a bit.  
“Cool.” Soul held it in his hand, almost admiring it.  
After a moment, Soul hoisted himself off the couch and went to his room, taking the petal with him.  
“Psst, hey.”  
Crona, slightly alarmed at the sound of the voice, looked to their left to see a hand waving from behind the cracked door.  
“Crona? Can you come here for a sec?” Her face popped out, hopeful.  
“Oh, yeah. Where…”  
Maka held open the door to the room. They stood up and shakily made their way over to her.  
It was obviously Maka’s bedroom, sporting tan colored walls, a desk littered with books, and various odd decorations placed in random places. The pink curtains cast a rosy glow throughout the room.  
Maka’s hands were held out as an offering. Crona accepted, folding their cold hands in her smooth, warm ones.  
“There wasn’t a day that I wouldn’t think about you.”  
Crona’s attention shifted up. She had her eyes on their hands, her hair drooping down and framing her face.  
“T-that’s…”  
“I was so concerned about you, every day. I don’t know why those memories stuck with me so much. I think we just had a strong connection, our soul’s resonated so well.” Her fingers squeezed around Crona’s hands, thumbs stroking the backs, trying to warm them up.  
“I remembered you too.” Crona inhaled shakily before speaking again, getting slowly more confident with their words.  
“You were the only memory of friendship I had, the only time I can remember someone being truly kind to me.”  
“Really?” Maka whispered.  
“And I’m glad… that I’m with you again.” Crona’s smile could melt the coldest of hearts.  
“At first, I was afraid that this was all just a dream. And that I would wake up somewhere dark, completely alone just like before.”  
“It’s not a dream.”  
After everyone had left, Crona stayed in Maka’s room until after sundown, the two whispering to each other like their friendship was a precious secret, grinning at each other bashfully and snacking on a few things Maka fetched from the kitchen. Maka was even able to make Crona giggle a few times, which she figured had to be one of her proudest accomplishments at this point in her life.  
“Ok, so what’s this called?”  
“Ice cream.” She handed them a tiny carton of ice cream that read “chocolate fudge brownie” and a spoon. As soon as Crona took a bite, their face lit up and they devoured the whole thing within 30 seconds.  
Maka made Crona some herbal tea next- which she preferred over coffee- and let them pick a movie from her collection to watch. Crona took a while to decide, but eventually settled on _When Marnie Was There_. They couldn’t tear their gaze away the entire time, and Maka noticed a few tears quietly escape from their eyes more than once during the movie.  
Okay, a few would be an understatement.  
It almost broke her heart to have to send sleepy Crona home at the end of the night, after they had nearly fallen asleep on her floor. Maka waved them goodbye from outside the apartment, and silently feared that the moonlight alone wouldn’t be enough to guide them. For now, at least, it would have to be.  
_Look for me again._


	2. Storge

“Father.”  
“Hmm? Oh, it’s you, Asura.”  
Asura, Lord Death’s frail eldest son, and also the assistant headmaster, was not easily trusting or readily trusted by any of the staff or students. Despite this, he still had full reign over a lot of things when it came to the academy, and was ready to be the headmaster one day. That is, if Lord Death ever actually retired. He had been in this position since before Asura and Kid were born, and as long as anyone could remember. In fact, nobody was really quite sure how old Lord Death actually was. It was a common fact that his flowers, which were long vines that could spread across an entire room, were the elusive xeranthemums, known as the flower of everlasting immortality. Strangely enough, nobody else currently alive is shown to have had these flowers, and throughout history it is impossible to say if anyone ever has. Because of this so called “immortality flower,” Lord Death had been questioned about his phobia several times, but has been quoted as saying, “ _I guess I’m just not really scared of anything! Hoo hoo!_ ”  
Asura’s flowers, on the other hand, were spindly red spider lilies, barely visible through the excessive number of scarves he normally had wrapped around his body. Also, unlike his father, Asura seemed to be afraid of everything that moved, so it was questionable as to what he truly had a phobia of.  
“I’ve heard that you’ve admitted a new student to the academy.”  
Lord Death nodded.  
“Yes, yes! And an excellent addition, if I may say so! At first, they seemed quite clueless as to what was happening, but they seem to be catching on rather quickly, and are excelling in their writing elective! Although, with the combat class, we want to take it slowly, and haven’t taught them anything except simple self defense yet. Placing them directly into the EAT class was a difficult decision but they seem to be handling it quite well. I can introduce you to them if you’d like.”  
“I figured out who it is. Specifically.”  
Lord Death was silent.  
“You do understand how risky it is.” Asura climbed the stairs up to the desk, looking him dead in the eye, or at least, through the eye holes in the skull mask.  
“We’ve taken necessary precautions. Medusa’s entire house was searched and defense has been heightened around the city. As far as Crona goes, I don’t really have much concern over what they could possibly do.” Lord Death remarked, shrugging.  
“They could be capable of much more than they let on.”  
Lord death pondered this, “The last I checked up on them, they had made some friends and gets along nicely with them. I specifically chose Maka Albarn to help them get adjusted to life here because of how levelheaded and kind she is, and everything seems to be going well. I wouldn’t be too worried about it!”  
His large hand came down to rest on Asura’s head, patting as if he was a dog.  
“Still,” Asura shoved the hand off, “Be cautious.”  
He left, shutting the large doors quietly behind him.  
**************************************************************  
Maka didn’t usually share her phobia so willingly with others. For the sake of Crona, she felt that she had to, to alleviate their mind a bit. Her other friends, beside Soul, had all found out on their own, slowly putting the pieces together based on conversations turned uncomfortable or her reactions to classmates getting together, public affection, or various other on-screen or novel romances. Once, when she was forced to sit through the entirety of one of Liz’s lesbian rom-coms, she had to sprint to the bathroom where she immediately vomited in the toilet. Luckily, Liz didn’t take any offense because of it once Soul gave up and told her what the deal was.  
It would be wrong to say that this phobia was unfounded. Her parents’ relationship, which she had seen as a beacon of true love when she was little, soon turned sour as Papa became unfaithful and Mama became distant. Maka’s fear was truly realized by the time they moved to Death City.  
Crona was lost to her. The time she had spent with them was minimal, but still, she couldn’t forget them, couldn’t get those small memories to leave her alone. There was something about Crona that had changed her soul, and found a permanent spot within her heart.  
Everything got so, so much worse after the divorce. Her parents didn’t really love each other, did they?  
So, of course, Maka was afraid that devotion to her family in these troubled times might mean death for her. Even though romantic love- this _Pragma, Storge, Agape_ \- was what she really feared, she let it get to her head, the thought that all of this was partially her fault, the way that her parents seemed to forget that she was right there in the middle of this, the increased fighting and the divorce happening so fast… she blocked her family out, blocked out every nostalgic feeling she possibly could.  
Soul was there, as well as all of her other friends, during this. Her biggest mistake was trying to block them out too.  
_“Hey, where are we going? Stop tugging my hand so hard!”_  
“You haven’t shown up to school for a week, Maka. That isn’t like you.” Soul stopped at a door in the middle of a hallway and faced her.  
“Yeah, so…” Maka tried to hide her face, not wanting Soul to be able to read her, like he always could.  
“We’re going in, come on.”  
The dusty room was partially lit by the afternoon sun. In the middle sat an old, baby grand piano, unused by the academy for years. Soul lifted up the cover, brushed off the keys a little, and sat down.  
“Wh- huh! You never play the piano anymore, Soul!” Maka couldn’t contain her excitement, sitting down on the edge of the bench with him.  
Soul sighed, “Don’t get in the way…”  
As much as Soul completely wanted to let loose and bang out whatever he wanted on the piano, he had to settle for an actual song. He’d found the sheet music for a short song he’d written about the time he’d first come to the academy, and he remembered the day he’d played it for Maka after days of her pestering him to let her listen to his piano playing again. Taking this song, he’d re-worked it a bit and came up with something he thought she’d like. Not very good at communicating with words, he’d hoped that his playing would somehow convey his devotion as a friend.  
Throughout the song, Maka was still, her previously happy face turning into something unreadable. Soul couldn’t tell if she remembered it or not, be he really hoped she did. As he neared the end, he was so sure he heard sniffling coming from Maka.  
He waited a few seconds after he finished playing to speak.  
“So, uh, you see… You don’t have to hide anything from me, Maka. If there’s something you need to talk about, I’m… always here, and the others are too. I think all of them would be fine with listening to you.” At this, he finally looked up from the piano, and sure enough, she was crying.  
“Uhh, crap, s-sorry Maka, did- did I say something I shouldn’t have?” He tried touching her shoulder, rubbing his neck awkwardly.  
She rubbed at her face, trying to stop the tears, “N-no, it’s- I’m sorry! I don’t know why I’m crying!”  
Before Soul could respond, she’d wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his shoulder. She could feel him clumsily patting her on the back, but then trying to soothingly rub her shoulder.  
“Thank you.” She had whispered, not even sure if it had been loud enough for him to hear.  
Soul had helped her to face her fear. But regardless, when her mind wandered to the thought of romantic love, that feeling of disgust still lingered.  
And after all of this, despite everything- she still, at times, found herself dreaming of a close relationship, an unbreakable bond with someone. She always caught and lectured herself when this happened, but still… It must have been her flower’s fault. She knew she was waiting for someone, and the thought of finding someone who would fit together with her so perfectly? It terrified her, but also made her heart beat in anticipation of what was to come.  
**************************************************************  
A sunny Saturday morning was the perfect time for a picnic, in Maka’s opinion. It had been one of the first temperate days in a while, hinting at summer coming to an end. October brought about clear, windy days and sinister, starry nights.  
The pink blanket they were sitting on was littered with various wrappers, plates, and empty juice pouches that had been abandoned for a game of frisbee. The blue disk that they were passing around had been pulled out of Soul’s closet, hidden underneath years of childhood memoirs. Most of them had opted to go barefoot, scrambling around in the dewy, morning grass.  
“Tsubaki, I’m open!”  
“No, toss it over here!”  
Maka and Crona watched them scurry around, choosing to remain on the blanket instead. Crona helped themselves to another cherry flavored Kool-Aid.  
“So, Crona.”  
Crona pulled at their oddly patterned pink rose skirt. Liz and Patty had helped Crona pick out new clothes that weren’t so… dark. It matched their newly sprouted pink roses, although the black still overpowered them like tea candles in a never-ending darkness.  
“Are you feeling… uh.” She contemplated her words for a moment.  
“At home here?”  
Crona pondered this. If anyone was making them feel more… at home, as she put it, it was Maka. Of course, they didn’t have much of a memory of such a home to base it off of. One that made them truly happy? They figured this was as close to happiness as they could get, seated here in the peaceful autumntime Death City sun.  
Crona managed a smile, hoping she would take that as an answer. When she smiled in return, Crona felt something fluff up in their gut like cotton candy being swirled around.  
Maka shifted to look up at the sky.  
“I just wanted to make sure you were getting adjusted okay. I remember when I first started at the academy, it was difficult to get used to.” Her hand unconsciously inched closer to Crona.  
“Even though I had been living in Death City for a while, starting at such a strange high school was tough. Especially because of how we’re expected to learn how to defend ourselves. And take down enemies. One thing that bothered me a lot- and still does- was that my dad works at the school. I steer clear of him whenever possible.”  
“Your dad?”  
“Oh, yeah. He’s… ugh.”  
“Ugh?”  
“I’d rather not talk about him. He and Mama got divorced a while ago, and… it’s tough.”  
“You can tell me about it, if you want.” Crona murmured, hoping she would continue.  
Maka paused at this, but then kept speaking.  
“Okay, well… they had been fighting for several years, about what, I’d rather not say,” Maka sighed, “…Both of them care about me, I can tell. But…” Maka slid her legs up and placed her arms on her knees, looking dejected.  
“Neither of them were really the same after the divorce. Mama decided to start traveling, and Papa… Papa drinks a lot. He tries to get me to notice him and spend time with him, but I just… I just don’t want to give him the satisfaction. He obviously didn’t care about Mama, so why is he still pretending that he cares about me?” Tears pricked the corners of Maka’s eyes.  
“I know I shouldn’t say that… I just hate being around him.” She exhaled, trying to calm down.  
“But I know I was an accident. My parents were only 18 when I was born, it’s just so… obvious that they were fooling around and didn’t plan on me-”  
“It’s okay.” Crona replied, unexpectedly, “I was definitely an accident too.”  
She felt a finger brush against her cheek, wiping away a stray tear, albeit a bit roughly.  
She sniffled, “Thanks, Crona. For listening to me ramble. I don’t really talk about my problems a lot with anyone else besides Soul. But, I think I feel comfortable with you.” She chuckled, trying to diffuse the situation.  
“And,” she continued, “If you ever need to talk to me about anything, just know that I’m here, okay? I’m always willing to listen.” Maka, curious, reached forward and pushed a section of hair out of their face. She sucked in a breath.  
“You are so… pretty.”  
“Wh-what?” Crona jerked back, “I’m not, I don’t think pretty would be the word to describe me.”  
Still, Crona smiled shyly and looked back to Maka in admiration.  
“ _Whahahahahaha!_ I’ve got this game in the bag, you can’t stop me now!” The spell between Maka and Crona was broken as they looked up at the sound of Black Star’s roaring laughter.  
Bracing himself to jump to catch the frisbee, Black Star turned to Kid and winked, and was promptly nailed in the stomach with the it.  
He doubled over and flopped onto the grass, groaning. Tsubaki put her hands over her mouth.  
“Oh, I’m so sorry, Black Star! I didn’t mean to hit you!”  
Black Star was, of course, writhing around like an idiot.  
“Noooo… it’s over! Kid, my love! Come comfort me in my last dying moments!”  
Kid stood over him, slightly amused but not willing to bend down and help.  
“You idiot.”  
He earned a smile from Kid, which Black Star figured had to count for something good.  
As it was reaching afternoon, the time came for them to part ways, and Maka decided to walk Crona back to the dormitory, which wasn’t far. As they neared the doors, Maka reached out for Crona’s hand and grabbed it in a rush.  
“Are you sure you’re okay on your own? If you need anything, just call me, alright?”  
“Yeah… I’ll be fine.” Crona tried to assure themselves that they would be.  
“Thank you for inviting me today.” They mumbled.  
Maka lunged forward and trapped Crona in a crushing hug. Crona nearly heaved as the breath was knocked out of them, but wrapped their arms around Maka tentatively, careful not to squash her flowers too much.  
“Everything will be alright, just remember that.” Maka said firmly, “That’s what I tell myself when I’m having doubts about the future.”  
“Oh, okay, I’ll, uh… try to remember.”  
The room was dimmed, exactly how they’d left it, with the curtains pulled to block out the sun. Most of the objects in the room were given to them by the academy and the dorm, either school supplies or necessary hygiene items. Besides that, the only personal belongings they had at this point were given to them by Maka- a few cute trinkets and a picture she’d taken of the two of them, with a frame to go along with it- and Soul- a small CD player in exchange for the rose clipping. Soul had also handed Crona a CD titled _Gorillaz: The Fall_ , saying, _“It’s great, give it a go.”_ But Crona had yet to listen to it, not even sure how to work the device.  
On a Saturday like this, with nothing much to do except stare at the wall, they took a seat at their desk and began scribbling random doodles in a notebook.  
“I wish Maka was right.”  
“But everything is not going to be alright.” They whispered to themselves, sliding the pen across the page.  
_“Kurona. There you are.”_  
Crona froze in place. Their gaze was drawn slowly upward, terrified that the voice sounded like it was coming from the ceiling. When they saw nothing, they bolted out of their chair and ran for the light switch, flipping it on in a flash and scanning the room hurriedly.  
_“You killed me.”_ This time when the voice came wafting from behind them, they lunged away, grabbing the bed for stability and yelping.  
Medusa materialized in front of them, hand raised threateningly and expelling a horrible black aura. She floated through the air and Crona scrambled away, covering their face. They cried out when they slammed into the dresser, toppling the entire thing over with a sickeningly loud _bang_. They struggled to get on their feet again.  
_“Killed me. With that cursed sword.”_  
_**“It’s true, you know.”**_ A new voice came, hissing into Crona’s ear.  
“Stop, NO! I didn’t mean to do it, Mother, it felt like I was possessed, just leave me ALONE!” Clutching at their ears, they smashed their face into the corner of the room, trying to make themselves as small as possible. The thorns skittered against the wall, some lashing out in the opposite direction toward the apparition.  
_**“You’re nothing but a no-good murderer. I helped you, but in the end, it was you who killed Medusa.”**_  
“No, no. NO!” Crona’s mind tried to reject all memories of the event, but these spirits still haunted them, making it impossible to forget.  
_“Impudent child, disgusting thing, you useless piece of shit.”_  
Crona felt like they were close to passing out, seeing thorns and darkness on all edges of their vision.  
_“Say my name. If you can’t even do that, then you are truly as weak as I thought.”_  
“I won’t do it. There’s no way.”  
_“Say it!”_  
Crona inhaled shakily, feeling an uneasy sleepiness wash over them.  
“Medusa.”  
_“Don’t forget.”_  
Medusa’s voice faded out, leaving only the deep bellowing of the sword.  
_**“You can always kill more, if you’d like.”**_  
**************************************************************  
Soul fumbled with the charcoal watering can, holding it tight as he dotingly spent time pouring the right amount of water into each flower’s pot. One by one, they all perked up, but still didn’t show any signs of getting bigger. Soul heard footsteps behind him.  
“Yeah, did you need something?” Soul grumbled, already predicting what the noise was.  
“Oh, no, I just wanted to check up on your progress.” The Demon stood beside Soul, glancing down at the lively array, which were swaying from an invisible breeze.  
Soul griped, “It’s not much, are you sure you’re not cursed or something? They only seem to wilt whenever you’re around.” The hyacinth and cosmos were curling in on themselves.  
“No,” the Demon chuckled, “They simply just don’t possess enough willpower to withstand your wavelength yet.”  
Soul jolted, “H-huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”  
“Don’t tell me you didn’t know. I AM you. Well at least the part of you that is truly mad. It seems you don’t have enough willpower to accept this either.”  
Soul stared down at his garden, eyebrows furrowed, clutching the watering can like it was the only thing keeping him tethered to reality. As if this _was_ reality.  
“So… so what? That doesn’t mean that I’m like you, am I? I don’t-” he breathed out shakily, “I don’t want to be like this. I can’t become this.”  
“What you become… in the end, it’s up to you. Ah-” The Demon pointed out something amid the flowers- Soul followed his finger to Crona’s rose. The few petals shoved in the dirt were reaching out, and the thorns appeared to be crawling, trying to escape the confines of the pot. A faint, sort of mystical purple glow was being emitted, washing over the rest of the flowers.  
“No way!” Soul stumbled to get a better look, kneeling down by it and running his fingers over the petals.  
“Hey, what’s-” Soul turned around to find the room empty, a spirit of a presence being left behind.  
**************************************************************  
It was always worse at night.  
During the day, it’s normally just a buzzing in the back of Liz’s mind, something she knows she can’t quell. It will stay with her until the end of time. Her fear is heightened any time a man walks into the room-clunking feet and enormous hands-, any time some gross fifteen-year-old at school jokes about jacking off to porn, any time she is left to her own thoughts.  
She grew up in a whore house. She tries to suppress those memories.  
The fear comes to Liz in the middle of the night, working through her mind, beating her down slowly. Tsubaki, her girlfriend, is so supportive of her, so softly loving, that it kills her to imagine the future. Gentle touches and understanding blue eyes ease the pain. A little.  
_Maybe I’ll suffocate to death while she’s sitting on my face_ , Liz thinks. In the end, she knows it won’t be true, she won’t have a future with her, she’ll get to die at the hands of fear just like everybody else.  
The Brooklyn alleyways were her worst nightmare. She and her sister hoarded guns, as many pistols as they could steal. They were each other’s solace, they hung onto each other as they flung themselves out into the big, ruthless world.  
She didn’t trust anyone but her younger sister, until suddenly, there was Kid. Men, she avoided at all costs, but Kid, meticulous, grounded Kid, was the only man she could ever put her full trust in. He’d shown her mercy at her darkest time.  
Her darkest time was spent constantly avoiding… what? That word she doesn’t want to think about, doesn’t want mentioned, doesn’t want to exist. She thinks about it anyway: rape. Her very soul shudders as her mind plays through every possibility of how she could meet her end- Thick, bruising fingers, drunk men, bloody knives, guns pressed to her head, tied up in a car trunk.  
A thumb strokes over her cheek. She is sucked back into reality.  
“You okay?” Tsubaki whispers dotingly. Liz finds herself smiling at her girlfriend, true, genuine admiration bubbling up and masking her fears for the time being.  
“I think so.”


	3. Philia

The sun had gone down in Death city, but Crona and Maka were still in the academy, holed up in the library. They had both needed to do research for a paper, so they worked on it together, sitting at a table in the corner for hours.  
Maka knew they probably could have spent less time there if she’d focused better, but with Crona being there, and just being so _cute_ , it had been, well… distracting.  
“History is boring,” Crona had remarked halfway through, setting down the book about King Arthur and Excalibur, and digging through the pile to find the book about Greek Culture and Mythology, “And scary.”  
“It’s necessary though. You still haven’t found a topic you want to work on yet?” Maka looked up from taking notes.  
“No…” Crona pouted slightly, trying to distract themself with the book, flipping through the pages.  
“Maybe I can help you.”  
After helping Crona settle on a topic more related to art history instead of war, she did a bit more work, glancing up at Crona at least every ten seconds and feeling her stomach do somersaults each time.  
She eventually packed up her stuff, said, “See you tomorrow, Crona! Remember, the essay is due on Thursday!”, and left the library, leaving them completely alone in the big room. Even the librarian was nowhere to be seen.  
Curious, Crona picked the book about Greek Mythology back up and started flipping through, pausing to look at the pictures.  
They halted when they reached a certain page.  
“Echidna.” Their eyes scanned the text until they came to rest on the word _Gorgon_.  
“What?!” Flipping to the index, they searched for that word, then went to a random page among the several that it had listed.  
_Medusa stared back at them._  
They slammed the book shut and hopped up from their spot at the table, chewing on their lip as they hurried into and isle in the fiction section, pacing.  
“Huhh,” they groaned and brought a hand to their head, feeling a headache forming quickly. They trudged back and forth through the isle, repeating to themself, “Everything will be alright, everything will be alright, everything-”  
_“Kurona.”_  
They leaned back against the shelf, a sob nearly rising out of their throat.  
“Nooo, not here, please.” They choked, looking up at the ceiling.  
They began to shudder, their thorns protested being pressed against the books and started clawing at their shoulders.  
“Shit.” They whispered.  
“Hello.”  
Crona, startled by the sudden voice, but unable to move, could only look back down in alarm. What they saw was a man wearing at least 10 scarves.  
“You’re the new student, aren’t you?” He questioned.  
“Y-ye,” Crona coughed, “Yes.” Crona noticed that he bore a resemblance to Kid, but was thinner and paler, with longer hair and even stranger white markings in it. His flowers were the same color, but were stringy, and not at all organized like Kid’s were.  
“Hm. I’m Asura, the assistant headmaster, and the library is about to close.” Blinking, Asura appeared to be looking at Crona’s rose, which was poking out from behind them, slightly smashed.  
He moved closer, getting a bit too close for Crona’s comfort, and began running his finger along the petals, careful to avoid the thorns.  
“Uhhh,” Crona whined, “What-”  
“Fascinating.” Asura commented, “You should really take better care of it.”  
“Anyways, it’s time to get going.” Asura checked his watch, then looked up to the windows near the ceiling.  
“It’s cold outside tonight. Take this.” Unwrapping one of the scarves from around himself, he wrapped it around Crona’s neck, careful not to cover the rose with it.  
“Farewell.” Asura was out the door before Crona could even reply.  
It would be crazy to say that Asura was afraid of _everything_ , because that would create an empty shell of a person that would never even move, would be scared to death by their thoughts and their existence and their own shadow. Rather, Asura was afraid of the thought that literally anything could cause his death. In a world where everyone knew how they would die, Asura was the only one who did not understand. He saw everything, every situation as potentially dangerous. Everyday was full of overthinking. He stayed away from bodies of water, even bathtubs. The man avoided the doctors, thinking it would be revealed that he was horribly sick. He never took medication, fearful of overdose or any side effects. He stayed far away from high surfaces. He didn’t drive, he was rarely seen walking around at night, and even then, still avoided being outside when the sun was out. He got nowhere near the combat classes or any other possibly dangerous classes, he claimed he hated sharp things, loud things, bright things, and refused to consume so many different types of foods for fear of choking or being allergic, and soon enough barely ate altogether. And most of all, he avoided people as much as he could. The anxiety and obsession behind what could kill him drove him _mad_ , so he focused all his energy on one thing only: the school and becoming headmaster someday. Learning to deal with dangerous things and situations would come eventually, he thought, but not now.  
When he was about 10 years old, in a period of astounding numbness, he had dragged his protesting brother to the graveyard in town. He strode through the gate, his hand latched onto his brother’s arm, who was kicking and shouting.  
“See this, Kid? This is where we’re all going to end up someday.”  
Kid had only screamed, eventually clawing his way out of his brother’s grasp and sprinting out of the graveyard.  
“It was stupid for me to think I could defeat death.”  
**************************************************************  
“Maka.” A faint whisper and a knock on the door. Maka got up from her spot on the couch, abandoning her book and her tea. She was rather surprised to see Crona at the door, fidgeting slightly and clutching a letter to their chest like it was their life. Their pink roses had wilted.  
“Oh, come in!” They stepped in, not making any move to sit down.  
“You can make yourself comfortable. I can heat up some more water if you want tea.”  
“No, it’s fine, actually I came here to… give you this. Kid was trying to find you after school to give it to you, but you left so… I offered to bring it.”  
Maka smiled.  
“Thank you.” Maka plucked the note from their hand, trying to make eye contact. They wouldn’t look at her.  
She opened the note in a hurry and scanned over its contents, wandering over to the other side of the room.  
“What?!”  
Crona looked up, startled by her outburst.  
“Is everything okay?”  
“No… someone’s been killed!? By an Arachnophobia member… this is crazy! None of us have had a run in with one of them in months! And now someone in town has gotten murdered…”  
Maka placed her hand over her mouth, unbelieving. Reading it aloud in a shaky voice, she continued from the point she left off.  
_“We are deeply sorry to inform you of this tragedy in this way, as it has not been released in the news yet, and we are doing everything in our power to locate who has committed this crime. Unfortunately, this could possibly signal the group Arachnophobia being once again on the rise, and ask that all students remain cautious. No formal search parties compiled of EAT students have been arranged yet, so we ask that all students remain stationary for the time being.”_  
“This is a lot to deal with.” Maka seated herself on the couch.  
“We’ve had lots of problems with Arachnophobia in the past, but they haven’t done much recently. The random soldiers were usually easier to deal with, it’s a shame an EAT student couldn’t catch them in time…”  
Crona remained silent and took a seat on the other couch. Maka could tell by their shifting eyes that their mind was busy.  
“Is everything okay?” Her voice was soft.  
“Yes.” Crona’s voice was unstable and it was incredibly obvious that they were lying. Maka moved to sit on the cushion beside them.  
“Crona, please… talk to me.”  
“About what?” They didn’t sound amused.  
Maka frowned.  
“Don’t play dumb with me, something is bothering you.”  
“Maybe I can’t tell you about it.”  
“But-”  
“Hm.”  
They sat in the stillness for a few moments, a slight tension in the air, before Crona gave in.  
“…I keep… hallucinating.”  
“Hallucinating!” Maka whispered, “Hallucinating… what?”  
Crona let a breath out, “My mother.”  
“Oh…” Maka lets that sink in. While she knew Crona’s mother had to have been terrible for them to have been prompted to kill her, she never thought to ask about it, not wanting to make Crona uncomfortable. This time, though, she decided to probe just a little bit and see if they would answer.  
“I know that your mother hurt you a lot. Did she do… anything…” she sucked in a breath, “…anything else bad to you?”  
Crona sat in silence for a moment, before answering.  
“She ordered me around some. And… wouldn’t give feed me if I was acting bad. Which, according to her, was… most of the time. And uh…”  
Maka slid her hand over to cover Crona’s, stroking their hand with her thumb, encouraging them further.  
“She would lock me in a dark room for sometimes what felt like days.” Crona shuddered at the recollections of the painful ache in their stomach and the stink of urine on the stone floor.  
“It must be terrible for you to still be seeing her when she’s not really there. I wish I knew what to do about it.”  
“I don’t think there is anything you would be able to do.” Crona’s eyes shifted, searching for some sort of answer in the carpet.  
“I will admit, I’ve been having a lot of trouble adjusting to living this way. I know it’s easier than what I had before, and I don’t have to deal with…” Crona sighed “…being controlled by my mother anymore, but it’s almost like… I don’t know what to do. I don’t really have a goal in mind, like others seem to, and I’ve just been kind of, uh, l- living, I guess.”  
“I see. I’m sorry… that you feel this way.” She mulled over their words, and then spoke.  
“But, t-that’s perfectly fine. Nobody expects you to suddenly alter yourself completely in order to be positive and successful, or to fit in, or… to forget everything that happened to you. Changing and growing is a slow process.”  
“And it’s also fine that you don’t have a goal right now. You just got here, after all. You know, everyone else around you seem like they have everything under their control, but…” she chuckled, “They really don’t. Especially me.”  
Crona smiled at this.  
“Do you think things… might eventually get better?”  
“Of course I do. Right now, just try your best, and I’ll do whatever I can to support you.”  
She continued, “But I do want you to feel at ease here. If there is anything else I can do to make you feel better, you can let me know.”  
“Thank you.”  
Pressing their body against hers, they felt their thorns quiver slightly. They ignored it and breathed in her scent, which was heavy with herbal tea and the sweet smell of her astilbes. Something inside them murmured at them to stay here with her forever, drunk by her comforting whispers and soft squeezes.  
“Hey- oh.” Soul had thrown open the door to his bedroom, grimacing slightly when he saw what he’d just walked in to, but lightening his tone.  
“Tsugumi called me, she said she couldn’t reach you. I would go ask her what she needs so she doesn’t pester me anymore.”  
“Oh, okay.” Maka let go of Crona, much to their dismay. A ghost of the warmth lingered.  
Once Maka got up and went to her room, Crona nuzzled into the couch, getting sleepy from the warmness of the room and the sudden peace they felt. They hoped that with Maka’s help, they could subdue this dreadful feeling, making room for growth and a better state of mind.  
**************************************************************  
Crona was awakened by a subtle pounding, and soon realized as they yawned and rubbed at their eyes that they were still in Maka’s apartment. The sun had almost gone down completely, leaving only a faint glow in the sky outside. They found that a blanket had been placed over them, and Blair was snuggled into their lap.  
“Come in, it’s unlocked!” Maka shouted as she exited her bedroom, toting an assortment of textbooks and folders.  
The door was swung open gradually, revealing a somewhat flustered Tsugumi behind it. She let herself in, setting her stuff on the coffee table next to Maka’s.  
“Ready to get started?”  
“If you are, then sure! I can’t thank you enough for helping me, this class is getting really hard, and well… Anya and Meme are busy with their other classes, and I only have a few days until this test.”  
“It’s really no problem- Oh, I almost forgot, I have old notes stashed somewhere for your history class, I’ll be right back!” Maka fled back to her room, leaving Tsugumi standing there with Crona, who was still struggling to wake up.  
“You’re Crona, right?”  
“Uh, yeah.” Crona stretched, sitting up. Blair did not take kindly to this shift in position and hopped off, moving to the chair instead.  
Tsugumi beamed.  
“I wanted to talk to you again.”  
“W-why?”  
“You remind me of myself when I first came to the academy.” Tsugumi flopped down on the opposite couch.  
“I was so scared, but- I knew I needed to learn to protect myself. For a while, I really had no idea what I was doing.” She giggled.  
“But, it got better, and I made friends who support me. I’m glad that you were able to make friends too, Crona.”  
Crona didn’t say anything, but smiled to themselves.  
“And Maka is so wonderful!” Tsugumi continued, starting to organize her things.  
“She’s so brave and selfless, and always willing to help me when I have problems like this.”  
Crona agreed, still feeling sleepy, “She is.”  
Tsugumi watched Crona and started grinning smugly.  
“You’re blushing.”  
“What!?” Crona nearly snapped fully awake.  
Tsugumi snickered, “Do you liiike her?”  
Crona did not understand what Tsugumi was trying to say one bit.  
“Yeah, of course, she’s my friend.”  
“No, dummy!” Tsugumi stuck her tongue out, “I mean in a different way. You look like you’re in _looooove!_ ” She dragged out the last word.  
“In love?” Crona was definitely blushing now. It’s not as though they’d fallen in love with her that quickly, but Crona admitted to themself that _something_ was there that they couldn’t describe, and really didn’t fully understand. And, to be honest, they kind of wished they could kiss her. Just a little bit. But they knew that could never happen, because Maka had a phobia of-  
Maka suddenly returned, slamming the notebook onto the table.  
“ _Finally_ found it.” Maka flipped through a bunch of papers as Crona studied Tsugumi. They noticed that her flower on her head looked incredibly close to blooming, showing a hint of purple. Maka noticed this too, and she couldn’t help but to comment.  
“Your flower’s almost opened up! Do you know what kind it is yet?”  
“No, I don’t.” Tsugumi laughed nervously, “I know there are ways to tell, but…”  
She held her hands over her heart.  
“I want it to be a surprise!” She beamed.  
“That’s so cool! I can’t wait to find out! Now, show me which part you’re having the most trouble with, first…”  
Crona could feel their consciousness fading out again, and despite the girls conversing, they fell, once again, into a comforting sleep.  
**************************************************************  
Crona’s next visit to the doctor had to be one of the most painful and humiliating. They didn’t quite understand what was happening to them, but they picked up on the words “bone marrow” and “anesthesia.” Once the endless ordeal was over with, Crona was allowed to relax in the same room that they had been in before.  
Stein came back into the room after a while, asking Crona how they felt.  
“I’m… okay, I think.” In all honesty, they weren’t really sure. Besides the surgery being awful, Crona’s black rose had swollen, the thorns growing out even more.  
Stein seemed to be observing Crona’s rose.  
“Crona, I was wondering if you knew…”  
“Knew what?”  
“Our flowers,” Stein mumbled, “They don’t need sun, like regular flowers do. They feed off of your life force.”  
Crona cringed, “My… my what?”  
“I might want to take a look at your roses, they seem to be, hmm…” Stein pondered for a bit, “Odd.”  
Crona did not like that one bit.  
“Odd.” They repeated, scratching at their shoulder and swatting away a stray vine.  
An echoed, “Hey, I’m home!” sounded from the other side of the building.  
“In the back!” Stein yelled back, making Crona flinch.  
“Anyway, I’m prescribing you this medication to help.” Stein tried to tell Crona exactly what it would entail if the results of the test came back positive, but he didn’t know exactly how much of it they absorbed.  
“I see you have a patient!” Marie entered the room, swaying slightly as she walked over to Stein.  
“Yeah, I was just finishing up with them.”  
Marie captured Stein in a quick hug.  
“Crona,” Marie turned to them, “How are you? Are all of your other classes going alright?”  
“Yeah. Thanks to Maka, I think I’m doing okay.” Crona grinned bashfully. Marie was nice, she always made sure Crona understood the lectures and the homework, and she said hello to them every morning and whenever she passed them in the halls.  
“Maka helps you? That’s good, she’s such a bright student, and so sensible!”  
**************************************************************  
Maka scanned over her notes.  
“Yup, I think I’m pretty prepared for the test tomorrow. It should be easy, anyway.” She stroked Blair’s head, who had found a spot in the empty box Maka had left on her desk. Shutting the main light off and turning her bedside lamp on, she collapsed onto her bed and let her thoughts immediately wander to the time she had spent with Crona that day. Maka had taken Crona to the new bakery that opened near the square and treated them to pastries. A little bit of the filling had dripped down their chin and she had to stop herself from wiping it away. She covered her face with her hands when she remembered how cute Crona had looked trying to decide on a flavor. They were absolutely adorable, soft, shy stammering and fidgeting hands. Sweet, hesitant smiles and eyes that appeared tired and anxious but still carried a deep warmth to them, if you looked close enough. Her astilbes were fluttering in appreciation,  
_So cute, if I could, I would just kiss th-_  
Wait.  
Maka brought her hand up to her heart and grasped at the fabric, slowly realizing that, whoops, she had been falling into an unescapable trap this _whole damn time._ Scrambling to get up from the bed, she heaved, clutching at her stomach. At this very moment, she wanted to block out all thoughts of Crona, but they _just kept coming_ , invading her brain like a plague.  
_My chest feels tight, my throat is burning…_  
She suddenly felt as if she were falling apart, literally. She threw open the window for some air.  
_I’m in love. Damn it, damn, it, damn it, damn it!_  
Maka climbed back onto the bed in order to stick her head out into the chilly nighttime air. Senseless, she stared down at the concrete sidewalk in contemplation. Imagine hitting the ground within a few seconds, no time to think or regret. Just _splat._ Her body didn’t hit the ground, but her sickness did, and she was glad there was no one around to witness the disgraceful act of her puking out of her window.  
_I’ve never been in love before, so why is this happening now, why!?_  
Everything hurt.  
**************************************************************  
“Psst… Kid.”  
Kid, having just gotten out of his last class, turned around swiftly in the mostly empty hallway after just hearing a whisper of his name. His eyes landed on an arm sticking out of a broom closet he had passed. The hand beckoned him closer.  
Kid took a timid step forward.  
“Who-“  
The hand shot out and seized his shirt collar, yanking him inside. The door clicked shut and Kid broke himself off from the figure who had nearly ruined his cosmos.  
“Glad I could catch you, Kid.”  
“Wha- Black Star?” Kid straightened his jacket and brushed his flowers off, positioning them back where they go.  
Black Star stepped into the small sliver of light and grinned.  
“Black Star, I’m not fighting you in a broom closet.”  
“Well, uh… that’s not really what I had in mind.”  
Black Star then stepped _a little too close_ to Kid and in a flash, placed his hands on either side of Kid’s head against the wall.  
“Black Star, what-” Kid’s palm pressed against Star’s cheek, shoving him away.  
“C’mon,” Black Star protested, “Kid.”  
Black Star’s voice was barely a whisper, “You want this too, don’t you?’  
His mouth pushed against Kid’s, chapped lips crushing and teeth scraping in an attempt of a kiss.  
“Wait, Black Star, sto-” Kid’s words were muffled against Star’s mouth.  
He felt Black Star’s hands slide around his waist, gripping tightly, his mouth pressed back into Kid’s, crushing out his breath. Kid’s ears rang.  
“Mmf!”  
He let out a muffled grunt as his hands traveled up to Black Star’s chest, debating whether to push him away or pull him closer.  
When he opened his eyes and saw nothing but darkness, that was the deal breaker.  
Shoving Black Star away from him, he stumbled out of the closet in a rush, breathing heavily and trying to keep his cool.  
“Wait, but… I uh, thought-”  
“I can’t do this, Black Star, not now…” Kid wouldn’t meet his eyes as he hurried down the hallway and turned the corner.  
**************************************************************  
“Welcome.”  
“AH!” Soul nearly jumped, skidding back a few feet away from the Demon. He sighed.  
“Did you really have to do that?”  
The Demon ignored him.  
“I see you’ve crossed over into the darkest part of the room. Was the piano calling for you?”  
Soul scoffed, “No way.”  
“It just…” Soul’s eyes traveled back over to the piano.  
“…looked sad sitting over here on its own.”  
“Playing it would help, you know.” The demon remarked.  
“Help with what!?”  
“Help your friends bloom.”  
“Th-”Soul thought about his words for a moment.  
“…that’s what’s going to make those flowers grow? Are you serious?”  
“Would I lie to you?”  
Soul tried his best to make sure his facial expression was the pure embodiment of unamused. Nonetheless, he began considering this.  
Wringing his hands, Soul let his gaze wander back over to his garden on the other side of the room. Crona’s was the only flower that had been consistently growing, sprouting several other leaves to form a full rose and shooting out of the dirt. The thorns had tangled around the other pots, most notably Maka’s.  
Soul exhaled, “Alright. If it’s that simple, I guess I can give it a go.”  
“There’s just one more thing you have to do-” The Demon motioned over to beside Soul’s chair, where an extra-large pot had materialized. “-There’s one last person who doesn’t have their flowers planted.”  
Soul crouched down next to the last empty pot, which looked far too big to lift on his own. He ran his hands along the edge and suddenly _knew_. Carefully, he plucked off one of his own poppies and shoved it into the dirt.  
“Happy?”  
“Yes. Now, let’s go, not a moment to lose.”  
Soul ran a hand over the piano, admiring how smooth and spotless and _black_ it was. He tested a key, pressing a _G_ , which reverberated throughout the room hauntingly.  
“Are you ready to go? I assure you, this is the one thing to do that will get your friends growing.”  
He seated himself on the bench, gazing down at the keys.  
“Alright.”  
“And remember, this is the hell inside your head, Soul, anything could happen.”  
“I play, you listen.”  
**************************************************************  
“It all seems too easy. This will be the perfect time to do it, and after that, it will only take a bit more of breaking them down before they’re at out complete mercy. Death won’t know what hit him.” Arachne mused, filing her fingernails to a perfect point.  
“I’m excited, we haven’t planned something this big in years.”  
“We have gained just the right amount of following at the perfect time. There will be no escape.” Arachne dragged her fingernails across the wall, creating harsh marks.  
“I’ve always dreamed of beating Death. And now, those dreams might become reality.”  
**************************************************************  
After Maka realized her feelings, she was afraid that things would become more strangled between her and Crona. She pushed her feelings to the bottom of her gut, not wanting to make Crona wary, and fortunately, things only seemed to get better for the two of them. Maka’s sudden infatuation was a whole flurry mixed with good and bad feelings, and she constantly debated with herself whether to let them bloom or shove them back down into the depths of her consciousness.  
It wasn’t long before she stopped denying it. But, nonetheless, she still spent every night lying awake in horror.  
Everyday, though, got harder and harder, pretending like nothing was wrong and that she didn’t want to simultaneously make out with Crona and rip her own organs out at the same time. Everything accumulated until one fateful day, she finally told them the truth.  
In Maka’s defense, she hadn’t meant to tell them, it just slipped out.  
She, Crona, and Soul had been playing Monopoly on a rainy evening, and despite Maka and Soul playing it on a regular basis when friends came to visit, Crona was kicking their asses. Crona didn’t even understand how they were winning, just buying whatever property they landed on, and somehow got extremely lucky.  
“If I go bankrupt, I’m joining Crona’s side.” Maka commented.  
“Hey!” Soul snapped, throwing his wheelbarrow down onto the board, “Why not join me? We could take Crona down!”  
“But you’re not winning, are you, Soul?” She teased, “You’ve barely got any money, anyway.”  
Crona’s turn. They fumbled with the dice, tossing them onto the board on accident and knocking down 2 pieces as well as a house.  
“What are you _doing_?” Soul put his head in his hands.  
Crona huffed, “My best.”  
Maka chuckled.  
“Besides, even if they were losing, I’d still join their side, I love them too much not to.”  
Crona halted in the middle of trying to straighten the pieces.  
“Uhh.”  
“What?”  
Realizing what she had just admitted, her face heated up and she grasped at her skirt, suddenly overcome by an unsteady quivering.  
She wanted to play it off as _platonic love, platonic love, that’s what I meant_ , but it was too late, her expression already gave everything away and considering her phobia, the implications were there and obvious.  
“Damn it.” She whispered.  
“IIIIII should probably leave.” Soul hopped off of the couch and slid into his room. The door clicked.  
They sat there in the heavy silence, Crona wanting to speak but not knowing what to say, before Maka sobbed.  
“I’m… so sorry.”  
“Wait, Maka-”  
Maka fled to her room, slamming the door behind her. Crona didn’t waste any time flinging the door back open, but felt guilty the moment they saw her facing the other way, weeping. She looked up to them.  
“I didn’t _mean_ for this to happen, I-” She took a deep breath.  
“I didn’t expect it. But I do have feelings for you that I can’t ignore. It’s just _tearing me up inside._ ”  
“Because you’re afraid of love, aren’t you?” Crona looked entirely rejected, and began to turn, preparing to leave.  
“Hold on!” They felt Maka’s hand wrap around their wrist, and in an instant, she was pressed against their back, huddled against their thorns, but it didn’t seem to bother her.  
“I’m so scared, Crona. I’m terrified. But I can’t- I can’t lose you.”  
“I don’t have to go?”  
“N-No! Of course not!”  
Crona wanted to face Maka. They turned their head to look at her, gradually spinning their whole body around and wheezing when Maka flopped into their chest.  
“Crona?”  
“Yes?”  
“How do you feel about me?”  
“I don’t really understand everything,” They mumbled softly, wrapping their arms around her, “But I do understand that this is a wonderful feeling. And if- if I-”  
“Hm?”  
“If I could spend every moment of my life, right here with you, I would.” Crona's insides felt like they had turned to mush once they admitted that.  
“Really!?” Maka’s voice was soft but overjoyed.  
“I’m so afraid that this won’t turn out well.” She lamented.  
“But I want to be with you. And I think- I think I would probably die to be with you.”  
The most comforting, indescribable feeling washed over Crona. The rose that bloomed this time was similar to the color of their hair, a striking lavender. It popped up right next to the black one, but still could not rival it in size.  
**************************************************************  
Waking up and sitting up to look at the clock, Crona realized that they had slept in astoundingly late. It was a Sunday, which thankfully meant nowhere to be.  
Crona flopped back onto the bed, hugging a pillow to their chest. It had been just two days since Maka had confessed, and they kind of felt like they were in an otherworldly daze. It all seemed way too perfect to be true, and Crona had been unable to sleep last night because of the excitement from the kiss on the cheek Maka gave them when they had parted, along with a small astilbe she had picked off, which Crona had set delicately on the desk. On top of that, they hadn’t had any hallucinations for a few days, which made everything a little bit better.  
They had just begun to think about visiting her today again, and _possibly_ asking her if she wanted to go to the park, when they heard a soft knock on their dorm door.  
Crona was astonished when it turned out to be Maka.  
And something looked very wrong.  
“I’m sorry, I had to come over, Soul wasn’t at the apartment when I found out and I couldn’t stay there alone.”  
“Found out what?!” Crona couldn’t stand the expression on her face, it was as if she was just told that this past summer was the last she’d ever see.  
“It’s Tsugumi,” she wiped at her face, tears dripping like falling petals, “She-she was shot last night. She got lost and wandered somewhere she shouldn’t have and…” Maka choked, covering her mouth.  
“She’s dead?”  
Everything suddenly felt muffled.  
**************************************************************  
When someone dies, it is generally believed that their life flashes before their eyes. Every memory, mistake, and childish reverie, all before them. For Tsugumi, it was nothing like this sentimental assumption. Instead, it was just a white light of cold loneliness that swept over everything and wiped out the dreams of unrelenting blue skies and the stars at sunset.


	4. Eros

The All Hollows Eve Festival took place on possibly the darkest night of the month. Absolutely no stars shone in the sky and the moon was blocked out by clouds, making all of the colorful paper lanterns even more necessary. They swayed around from a strong breeze coming from the north.  
Tsubaki held onto her lantern tight as she took cautious steps through the crowd, scanning for a sign of any of her friends. Her yukata was black with pink camellias, patterned to match her blossoms perfectly. When she saw Soul’s white hair over by one of the booths, she called to Black Star behind her.  
“I found a few people! Black Star, come here!”  
Maka, Soul, and Crona were all huddled around the booth, looking at strange merchandise that could only be described as _witchy_. As Tsubaki approached, Maka looked to be completely absorbed in looking at candles. When Tsubaki stepped up next to her and tapped her on the shoulder, Maka jumped, almost dropping a candle she had been smelling.   
“Ohh, Tsubaki.” Her expression softened.  
“How are you doing, Maka?”  
“I’m doing fine.”  
Tsubaki sighed, “I mean with… with you know _what_.” Tsubaki gently prodded.   
Maka was squinting down at the candles, thumb running across the glass like she was trying to shine it.  
“I’ll be… fine. It’s _fine_.” She said forcefully.  
Tsubaki was entirely unconvinced, but figured she probably shouldn’t mention it any more than she did. Instead, she complimented Maka’s yukata, which was pink and white and looked slightly worn, but still pretty. She tried complementing Crona’s as well, which was purple and had a rose design, but they seemed too distracted by the intricate incense holders. Maka squeezed their hand.  
Soul could tell that Maka wanted to pretend like it wasn’t bothering her, but deep down, it definitely was. She just wanted to put on a happy face for everyone so she didn’t drag the mood down.  
“Seriously, Maka, you’re not fooling anyone.” He said to himself.   
_Not even Crona_. Crona and Soul had been next to her the entire time at the vigil, the funeral, and in the middle of the night when she was so torn up she couldn’t sleep at all. Crona was keeping Maka’s hand in theirs not just for their sanity, but for hers.  
As soon as the group met up with Kid and the sisters, they wandered around looking at more booths and various festivities, but an unspeakable dread tainted the air. Liz and Patty eventually started mentioning the idea of going to visit Tsugumi’s grave, as it was close, and the whole group had no choice but to follow suit.  
So, they made their way over to the graveyard, Liz, Patty, and Tsubaki in the lead, Maka, Crona, Soul, and Black Star falling behind a bit, and Kid, hanging back even further. When confronted with the gate, they waited for everyone to catch up. Maka entered first. She had decided that visiting and paying her respects might suppress her frightful state of mind, just a little bit. Everyone else followed afterword, except for Kid, who had found a spot underneath a tree just outside the gates, and looked content with waiting there.  
“Kid, are you not coming?” Liz questioned, staying back to walk over to him along with her sister.  
He shook his head, not meeting their eyes.  
“But, Kid,” Patty spoke softly, “Everyone else is going. Why won’t…” She trailed off as he looked up, appearing pained.  
“Everyone’s waiting for us.” Liz motioned with her lantern, holding it up. Patty nodded, keeping a tight hold on hers when a particularly strong wind blew through, threatening to blow it away.  
“Kid,” Liz stretched out her hand for him.  
 _Come on, summer’s gone._  
“Please come.”  
For the first time since she’d known him, she saw true panic in his expression.  
“No,” he choked out, “I can’t.”  
Despite his name, Kid could not stand to see Death. He hadn’t even shown up to the funeral.  
Among this strain were memories of Kid’s mother, a few pictures and a single video and nothing else. She had died because of complications during childbirth. Asura, the sickly child, had not caused her any problems when he was born, but Kid was too much for her, it seemed. She was resilient, she had dreams of wanting children despite her fears of childbirth. And she was ready to test Death, to see how far she could go. And Death was Kid.  
In the graveyard, Maka kneeled down in front of Tsugumi’s grave.   
The tombstone read:  
“ _Tsugumi Harudori_ ”, followed by the years of her birth and death. Underneath that was small text.  
“ _Our Morning Glory_.”  
Maka let the tears fall freely.  
“I’m sorry!”  
Comforting hands placed themselves onto her shoulders, softly brushing.  
“Maka.” Tsubaki.  
“There is nothing you could have done.”  
Soul stepped up next. He brought his hand to his heart and plucked a poppy from his chest, bending down and placing it over Tsugumi’s grave. One by one, all of the others placed their own flowers next to Soul’s, creating a bouquet. Kid let Liz pluck off one of his cosmos, but he still remained by the tree, not able to look at anyone else.   
Crona brushed their hand over their black rose, feeling around until they picked off a big petal. They held it in front of them and stared down at it blankly, gazing at their fear in their hands.   
Maka closed her hand over Crona’s and guided it down to place atop the rest of the pile. Crona let it go, smiling slightly as they saw it laying with the rest.  
“I’m proud of you.” Maka whispered.  
A commotion down the street caught Maka’s attention, panicked screams mixed with the sound of people fleeing. She looked to Soul, who nodded.  
“Let’s go.” Maka stood and motioned for her friends to follow.  
They weaved in and out through the crowd, rushing to find the source of the panic. The Square of Liberty appeared to be ablaze with light, terrified shouts emitting from the center as countless hands pointed towards the top of the statue, where two figures were seated. Maka pushed her way to the front of the crowd, followed by Soul, right by her side. Crona held back a bit, nearly frozen in place at the sight of the two familiar silhouettes up above.   
“Greetings, esteemed citizens of Death City.” The crowd fell into a hush at the sound of the powerful voice.  
“I have been observing each and every one of you enjoy this festival. All Hollow’s Eve, is it not?” The sleek figure held up one of the lanterns, lighting her face for the crowd to see.   
“Arachne Gorgon.” A voice behind Maka spoke.  
She swiveled around.  
“What!?”  
Kid was standing there with his arms crossed and an unreadable expression.  
“She’s the one in charge of the most notable group that has resisted the academy and the police force, running rampant with crimes and disgusting corruption like you would never believe.”  
“But her name, it-“  
“Yes. Arachne Gorgon… is Crona’s aunt.”  
Maka turned around slowly to face them again, fear-stricken. Soul placed a hand on her shoulder and shouted at the two women.  
“What the hell are you doing here!? Academy students are everywhere, and if you don’t get out of here they’re going to kick your ass!” He threatened. But still, he was cautious. He had no idea how powerful these women were, whether it would take one or one hundred academy students to beat them.  
“I’m afraid that simply can’t happen, unfortunately. We’ve come here with… a purpose.”  
“What sort of purpose?” Kid had stepped forward, placing himself in front of Maka and Soul.  
Arachne’s face twisted with something akin to delight.  
“Ah… the son of DEATH.”  
Kid stared her down, not breaking eye contact as she scoffed at him.  
“If you really want to know… we’ve come here for revenge.”  
A wave of panic washed over Crona and they grabbed at the arm next to them, which happened to be Tsubaki. Tsubaki’s noticed Crona’s dread and ran a calming hand up and down their arm as she observed the sisters. Crona desperately wished they could be up at the front with Maka, but didn’t want to risk their aunts seeing them.  
“Medusa Gorgon has been murdered.” Shaula continued for her, “And the academy is to blame.”  
“So, you want revenge… on us? For the death of your sister?” Kid seemed slightly shaken.  
A shout came from somewhere in the crowd, “Can you believe it!? Do they think it was the academy as a whole who killed her!?”  
“But it was Crona! Crona Gorgon did it, and everyone knows!” Another person yelled.  
Crona hid themself behind Tsubaki.  
“No, you see, we do what revenge on the child Kurona. But now that they attend the academy that we so despise… well, there’s hardly a difference, now, is there?”  
All at once, a mass of Arachne and Shaula’s minions appeared from nowhere and swarmed.  
And the entire crowd scattered in a frenzy.  
Maka was knocked down, and likely could have been trampled if she wasn’t yanked up from the back of her collar by Soul. She thanked him quickly, snagged his hand, and dragged him through the frantic crowd in the direction of Crona. Finding them still hanging onto Tsubaki, she grabbed their arm and yelled.  
“We need to get you out of here!”  
An Arachnophobia soldier busted through the mass of people and collided with Crona, leaving them on the ground with the soldier standing above them.  
“H-uh? Are you the one!?” he asked, bending over to look at Crona’s face.  
Before he could question further Maka pulled Crona from the ground in a flash as Soul knocked the man out with a swift kick.  
As a group they fled, turning the corner and heading in the direction of the academy, which they hoped was the safest place. Unfortunately, they ran into another mass of people, seemingly blocked by a group of soldiers. What they saw down the street was haunting.  
Two young girls walking side by side, slowly through the crowd, to face the mass of Arachnophobia soldiers and traitors against the common good.   
“Tsugumi was everything to us. And she was taken away,” The blonde girl said, “Far too soon.”  
“ _Anya,_ ” a whisper came from somewhere in the crowd, wafting through the air.  
“It was one of you.” The other girl’s voice cracked.  
“We want to know which one.” Anya threatened, voice firm, but broken.  
Maka was frozen in awe as the group of soldiers surged forward, but the girls beat down their enemies one by one, deflecting all attacks and taking special time to make each one of them suffer. As the crowd began to diffuse quickly as they saw openings to escape, Crona tugged Maka’s hand.  
“Let’s go.”  
Maka looked back over her shoulder at Anya and Meme, whishing she could help them.  
Liz, still near the square, had lost track of Patty and was searching desperately for her.  
 _“Patty! Patty, please, where are you?!”_  
She stopped running to sock a traitor in the face, and blocking another one who had come up behind her.  
“ _Sis! _” Patty’s voice called out from the other side of a building.  
“Patty, I’m coming!”  
Patty was cornered by five men, all slowly getting closer and pulling out weapons. Still, Patty stood her ground, shaking a bit at the sight of their knives. Her sunflower curled up.  
A gun cocked, and the traitor in the middle turned his head, met with Liz’s pistol.  
“Do you honestly want to try me?” She fired at his leg, causing the other four to scatter and the traitor to collapse. She kicked his useless, writhing body out of the way and wrapped her sister in an embrace.  
“Thanks…” Patty murmured, then looked up, “But I could have handled them on my own, you big bitch.”  
Before Liz could respond to _that_ , a deafening _boom_ was heard, coming from the square. Liz and Patty hurried out, dashing back down the street.  
Kid ran into them on the way there, nearly slamming into them, yelling something about _the statue. <.em>  
“Pr-professor Sid!”   
Shaula stood over Sid’s corpse, the statue in shambles, the torch broken off from the arm and stuck right into Sid’s brain.  
“One down, many more to go. Wow, I never thought that Lady Liberty would come in handy like this.”  
“Shit.” Shaken, Liz pointed her gun at Shaula and fired, missing. Shaula tore her gaze away from Sid and glared at Liz.  
“Don’t interfere.” Shaula lunged forward, Liz narrowly dodging and running out of the square with Kid and Patty in tow. She tossed the gun to Patty, who fired a few shots backward, but hit nowhere near Shaula. The gun, unfortunately, ran out of bullets.  
Getting nearer to the school, the two groups ran into each other, celebrating for a brief moment before continuing to run in a panic. Black Star lifted Kid up bridal style and carried him through the streets, despite Kid’s angry protesting.  
They quickly realized that towards the school might have been the wrong way to go, because at the top of the stairs, they were met face to face with a showdown.  
A few injured students were huddled in the corner, watching Marie and Arachne stare each other down.  
“How _dare_ you hurt my students!” Marie roared, standing her ground.  
Arachne shrugged, chuckling, “They got in my way. So, they got punished. Are you trying to get in my way too?” Arachne flaunted her nightshades, tapping her fingernails against her face.  
“I will do anything I can to keep you from away from them.”   
“Marie! Marie!” Stein’s voice was calling out, but it was far off.  
“Careful,” Arachne observed, “Are you sure you want to fight me with that pregnant belly of yours? If you’re not cautious, the results could be… disastrous.”  
Marie wasn’t listening, and got prepared to attack.  
“Alright. Suit yourself.”  
Arachne was lightning fast, way quicker than she appeared. It barely gave Marie enough time to dodge and throw a punch in her direction. Missing, she stepped back and tried again, but nothing was enough, she simply couldn’t beat Arachne’s speed. Again and again, they went back and forth, Arachne circling her and Marie narrowly escaping every time.  
“Damn it!” Marie managed to step on Arachne’s long dress as she got close, toppling Arachne over, and landed a kick right to her stomach.  
Arachne got up so quickly it looked like she flew. Uncurling her nails, she remarked,  
“Really.”  
Before Marie could move, Arachne’s hand dug into her stomach, forcing her back in a rush and hurling her across the pavement. Blood splattered against the stone and Canterbury bell blossoms scattered.  
The moment she hit, the bell tower that signaled midnight began to rang. The students around her yelled and shrieked, running-or limping- in every direction.  
“Marie! _Marie!_ ” Stein’s voice was closer now.  
While everyone else stood there, dumbfounded, Maka stepped forward, and Arachne flicked a bit of blood off of her hands.  
“ _Damn you!_ ” She didn’t waste any time, dashing towards Arachne at full speed, aiming a hit directly at her face. Arachne, of course, easily dodged, swiping her nails across Maka’s arm.  
“Augh!” Maka cried out in pain, grabbing onto her arm, and made eye contact with Crona, who appeared petrified and frightened out of their mind. In that brief moment, she lost concentration.   
“Maka, watch out!”  
Maka was thrown back and cried out as Arachne’s foot came into contact with her face. She held her face with her hand and fought to lift herself up, panicking when she saw the Arachne approaching, nails ready to strike.  
“DAMN IT! _Maka!_ ”  
Arachne rushed forward, fully prepared to dig her nails into Maka’s midsection.  
Maka, not completely able to see, still recognized the shove and a pained grunt as Soul threw himself in front of her, knocking Arachne out of the way but still getting her nails slashed across his chest. He collapsed onto Maka, who shrieked, still cradling her face but grabbing for him.  
“It’s Death, lets get going!” Arachne’s voice echoed and within a few seconds, all of Arachnophobia was gone, leaving only a hurt Maka, and unconscious Soul, and Death.   
**************************************************************  
Laying half-asleep in the bed, Soul raised himself up when he saw Maka enter. Maka had passed a doctor she did not recognize in the hall on their way to the other room, which was full of others who had gotten injured. The rest of the room Soul was in was empty, only having one other bed, which looked like it had been recently used.  
“Hey,” Soul said offhandedly.  
“He-hey!? After all that happened last night, the first thing you say to me is ‘Hey’?!”  
“Guess so.” He mumbled.  
“I was really worried about you, Soul. You could have died.”  
“But I didn’t.”  
“Are you- Are you serious!? Miss Marie is dead and this is how you’re acting!? We’re in her house right now, we’re-” Maka lashed out in a rage, blinded by tears. She took a deep breath and looked to Soul.  
“I don’t know what to do.” Maka observed the harsh rips on some of Soul’s poppies, which left a few of them wrinkled and torn.  
“…you think I’m not upset about her death.”  
“I- That’s not what I said.”  
Soul sat there for a moment, fiddling with his IV cord.  
“Today is the Day of the Dead. November 1st.”  
“What does that have to do with-”  
“You know, Maka, I don’t want to imagine how Stein is feeling right now. But uh- I am. And I don’t want to think about what could have happened if I hadn’t protected you in that moment.”  
Maka didn’t say anything.  
“You know their baby was almost due.”  
“Yes…” Maka whispered, clutching at her astilbes lightly.  
“I saw it happen. It keeps replaying in my mind.” Soul clenched his fist, looking pained.  
“I heard the news. Nobody knows where the body went. One moment it was there, untouched and cold, the next it wasn’t. Those fuckers, what could they possibly want with Marie’s body!?” Getting too worked up, he flopped down onto the bed, which elicited a pained grunt.  
“I haven’t slept at all.”  
Maka approached, laying a hand on Soul’s arm.  
“Thank you. For protecting me.” She murmured sheepishly.  
Soul coughed, “Don’t mention it.” He smiled at her, and received one back, despite both of their eyes communicating overwhelming sadness.  
**************************************************************  
Crona had been left alone since the incident. They had no idea what to do, what to think, what to feel. They only felt their fears clawing back in.  
 _ **“If you had me there, you could have protected yourself! You could have protected everyone. In fact, you could have just killed everyone, even Death if you wanted! AHAHAHA!”**_  
“Shut up, I don’t need this from you right now.”  
 _ **“Oooooh, finally, a response! But guess what? You can’t make me shut up, no matter what you do!”**_  
Crona huddled into the corner, squeezing a pillow, listening to the sword ramble on and on, mostly saying the same things.  
 _ **“If I had been there, you wouldn’t have had to count on that Maka girl to protect you! Ehehe!”**_  
At this, Crona frowned.  
“Don’t say her name.” they growled.  
“ _ **Well, that’s too bad-**_ ” The voice dissipated when there was a knock on the door. Crona trudged over slowly and answered.  
“Maka?”  
“Hey.” She mumbled, pushing past Crona into their room.  
“I’m sorry, I… had to get out of my apartment. Soul was allowed to come home, but… he’s still hurt. And every time I see him I just get… reminded.”  
She tried to smile.  
“And I wanted to see you, so, uh…” She trailed off, distracted by Crona’s dorm room.  
“I remember when I stayed in the dorms my first year. But, _ehehe_ , it was with another girl who I didn’t have much in common with. It must be nice to have a whole room to yourself.”  
“I guess.” Crona answered.  
“But it would be much nicer if I got to share a room with you.” The thought slipped out, unfiltered. They hid their face, unsure of what Maka would think, but they only heard her chuckle.  
“That would be nice, someday.” She mused, sitting on the edge of Crona’s bed.  
“I’m sorry we haven’t had time to spend together lately.”  
Crona waved their hands, “No, don’t apologize for that! A lot of stuff happened recently, so I don’t expect you to drop everything else in order to spend time with me.” Crona sat beside her.  
She leaned up and kissed them on the cheek, causing Crona to blush and hide their face in their hands.  
“I promise, I’ll always find time for us to spend together.”  
This time, Crona actually got to ask Maka if she wanted to go to the park, to which she replied _yes._ They spent the afternoon picking wildflowers and positioning them on each other to create flower crowns and the most colorful bouquets.   
_**”Stupid flowers.”**_ , the sword grumbled, but Crona ignored it.  
**************************************************************  
Now _this_ was a predicament Maka did not expect to get herself into.  
She had invited Crona over to watch another movie, to help get their mind off of everything, and just enjoy each other’s company. Plus cuddling.  
But before they had even gotten started, Crona had tripped over themselves, sprawling themselves onto the bed. With Maka underneath.  
Their face was so close to hers, staring back, wide eyed. They seemed to be frozen in place, contemplating something.  
Maka knew that this was probably a bad choice. But she could barely register the voice in the back of her mind telling her not to as she leaned up and mushed her lips against Crona’s. She felt them tense up, still frozen, and let herself stay put for a few seconds before drawing back, looking for some sort of reaction. When she was only met with that same terrified stare, she flopped back onto the bed.  
“I’m sorry.” She turned her head and covered her face with her hand. This was embarrassing. She felt like she’d overstepped her boundaries. Feeling Crona shift, she assumed they were finally moving to get off of her.   
Nothing could prepare her for Crona gripping her cheek and forcing her back up into another kiss. Her startled cry was muffled as Crona pressed down onto her, their hand snaking down to lay against her hip.  
Oh.  
 _Wow._  
A hesitant noise creeped up from the back of Crona’s throat. So Maka let her arms wrap around Crona’s shoulders, pulling them closer, if that’s even possible. She felt her astilbes smush in between their bodies, and the uncomfortable scraping of Crona’s thorns against her arms. She tried to ignore it, focusing on the sensation of Crona’s body so _close_ to hers.   
A satisfied sigh escaped her and she moved her lips against Crona’s, hoping they would get the idea and try to imitate it. She was pleasantly surprised when she felt them trying, despite it being a bit rough and feeling their teeth scrape slightly.  
“Nnnnh,” Crona moaned gently, discovering that they _definitely_ loved this feeling, trying to snuggle closer to Maka. Crona could suddenly feel another rose blooming on their back, but didn’t quite care at the moment.  
Maka’s eyes opened slowly, but then grew wide when she saw the flower. She broke off the kiss, to Crona’s dismay, alarmed. The rose that blossomed this time was coral colored. Having done research on the colors of roses after she had met Crona, she understood what this one meant.  
“Ohhh,” Maka pondered this, and unexpectedly raised her eyebrows.  
“Crona, are you,” she winked at them.  
“ _Thorny?_ ”  
Crona was speechless for an instant, wondering what Maka meant by that, exactly. Eventually, though, they put the pieces together in their brain.  
“Ahhhhh!” Their face became beet read and they nearly fell off the side of the bed, clambering to stay on. They smushed their face into the pillow.  
Maka couldn’t hold in her laughter for the rest of the night, much to Crona’s chagrin, but she did steal several more kisses during the movie, so they couldn’t exactly complain.  
**************************************************************  
The day after, Maka visited Crona’s dorm again, needing to work on homework with them, but also bringing along an assortment of card games to play, and fully planning on getting more kisses from Crona. Crona left the door unlocked, expecting her.  
“Hey, Crona!” she walked in, setting her bag on the bed, “I brought games! And the homework, of course.”   
When Crona glanced up from the desk, Maka realized that they were wearing reading glasses.  
Well, _fuck_. Her entire heart jumped out of her chest and her brain filled with mush.  
“Oh, and uh, you’ve got mail downstairs!” She played with her hair sheepishly.  
“Mail? From… who?” Crona removed the glasses and Maka followed Crona downstairs, helping them to carry the long box back up to their room.  
“It says it’s from Lord Death. Lord Death sent you a package? That’s so strange.” Maka observed the sticker on the package.  
They removed it from the box and unwrapped it together, lifting the fabric off to reveal-  
 _ **“Ragnarok.”**_  
“A sword?”  
“Uhmm, well…” Crona grabbed at their arm guiltily, “This was the sword that I used to…”  
The realization dawned on Maka.  
“It’s okay, you don’t have to say it.”  
Crona watched the sword a moment more, as if it would move on its own.  
“I don’t know what to do with it. Why would Lord Death give it to me?”  
“I guess… you could really learn how to use it? It could come in handy if Arachnophobia attacks again.”  
Crona gazed down at the sword, their expression unreadable.  
“I don’t want it.”  
“But- What are you going to do with it then?”  
“I- I don’t know.” Crona held their head in their hands.  
“It could be useful-”  
“Maka, it’s just like my mother. The sword keeps speaking to me.”  
In a fit of irritation, Crona covered the sword with the wrapping again messily and shoved it back into the box. Getting up from the floor and stomping over to their desk, they yanked some tape out of a drawer and started taping the top of the box back up, using way more tape then they really needed to. With a bit of struggle, they lifted the box thrust it under their bed, pushing it all the way back. Groaning, Crona sat on the bed, eyes filled to the brim with many different emotions at once.  
They moved back to the desk after a few seconds, picking up their notebook.  
“Let’s start studying.”  
“But-”  
“Let’s just start, please?” Crona’s eyes were pleading.  
Maka surrendered, “Alright.”  
**************************************************************  
It was their first day back to school in a while. A lot had been cancelled, due to circumstances. And, due to the circumstances, there was no Sid, no Marie, and no Stein.  
Substitutes had been hired for now, but the school remained somber.  
“Has anyone heard any news on how Stein is doing?” Tsubaki had asked over lunch.  
Soul, having spent time at the ER, had an answer.  
“He’s sick.”  
Everyone looked up from their food.  
“Stein, sick?” Black Star questioned, the only one who hadn’t moved.  
“I actually ran into him in the hall. It was…”  
“Not right. He looked like he stopped taking care of himself. Explains why he’s sick.”   
“He kept telling me that it’s hopeless or something like that. It was honestly pretty disturbing…” Soul trailed off.  
“Does anyone know what Stein’s phobia is?” Tsubaki questioned, worried. No one had an answer. Crona shivered, rubbing at their eyes and wondering why they were even more tired than usual.  
**************************************************************  
The sword had been too much. Bringing it into the room was a major mistake. Crona couldn’t even sleep anymore.  
 _ **“Remember how your mother died? There was so much blood. I would drink blood if I had a mouth.”**_  
“Did all of that… really happen?” Crona asked themselves, aware of the unmistakable presence of the sword in the room.  
 _ **“You’re nothing.”  
“You heard what your mother said about you.”  
“All you were useful for was carrying out that one small piece of your destiny.”  
“Nothing else, nothing else, you hear me? BWAHAHAHAHAHA!”**_  
Crona covered their head with their pillow, but it did nothing to block out the screeching.  
The next weekend, Maka asked Crona to come over and spend the night there, claiming she couldn’t sleep. Crona then found out that when Maka was curled up next to them, she slept soundly. Oh, well. They were glad they could help, but it isn’t as if they could sleep themself.   
Crona was still kept awake by the sword, although it was a lot fainter now. The only clear, loud message they got from them while lying there with Maka was, “ _ **Aww, you want to cuddle with your girlfriend? Well, SCREW YOU.”**_  
This went on for a while until Maka was woken up by Crona’s fidgeting. Their whole body was sweaty, and Maka felt it through their clothes.  
“Crona… are you alright?”  
“I’m fine, just,” They stroked her hair, “Go back to sleep.”  
“Have you not slept?” Looking concerned, she touched their forehead, feeling for a fever, but didn’t find one, with them still being as cold as ever.  
“Why can’t you sleep?” Maka cradled Crona’s face in her hands, meeting their eyes.  
Crona smiled somewhat, breathing out.  
“You know. Just stress and worry, probably.”  
They continued, “It’s a striking emotional numbness that grabs a hold of you in the worst time of the night.” Crona chuckled, their thumb running across Maka’s wrist, feeling her pulse.  
“Do you understand this feeling?”  
“Yes,” she said, “I do.”  
Crona felt their rose and thorns swell, wrapping around their shoulders and trying to reach Maka, they batted them out of the way.  
As she was falling back asleep, Crona whispered, almost incomprehensible-  
“Maka, I think I have a fear of interacting with other people.”  
**************************************************************  
Soul burst through the door to their apartment, slamming I behind him. On this particular day, it was rather chilly outside, but Soul was sweating intensely.   
“Stein is coughing up blood.”  
Maka’s hands flew to her mouth.   
Soul flopped down on the couch, breathing heavily, “I went to check up on him, but it was the worst time, apparently. There’s some doctors in there trying to help him, but they’re not sure what to do. The poor guy is hopeless. He keeps saying that it’s the end of something.”  
Maka absorbed this information, trying to accept it. She hadn’t been that close to Stein, because she honestly thought that he was rather creepy, but she’d still admired him as a teacher.  
“This may seem awful, but… maybe it would be better if he died soon.” Soul considered, “He’s been nothing but a walking corpse since Marie got killed. He’d get to be with her again, maybe.”  
“Maybe.” Maka agreed, looking back down to her book, but unable to focus.  
**************************************************************  
“Thanks for meeting me up here. Tsubaki never comes up to the balcony, so I’m normally here alone.”  
Kid stepped up next to Black Star, who was sitting on the ledge, his feet dangling. He patted the spot beside him.  
“Wanna sit?”  
Kid reluctantly perched himself on the ledge, brushing Black Star’s hand with his but then swiping it away.  
“So much has happened recently. I’m starting to wonder if anything will be the same after this.”  
Kid answered, “Everyone will eventually move past the painful feeling. It’s all a process of mourning.”  
“You know- I,” Black star grinned, trying to keep tears from escaping his eyes, “Sid was my babysitter when I was a kid. He was the best father figure that I had. And he helped me, once I was, y’know, out of there.”   
“And he was killed so easily.” He clenched his fist, “If I ever see Shaula again, she’s going down!” But he couldn’t muster up enough energy as usual, dropping his fist and feeling tears finally start to fall.  
Kid brought his hand back to rest on Black Star’s. Black Star glanced at Kid and then wiped his face off in a hurry.  
“But, enough about that. The real reason I wanted you to come here was to tell you that I-” Black Star paused when he met Kid’s eyes. Intensely gold.   
“I fell in love with you one night in September.”  
Dumbfounded, Kid’s eyes widened, his mouth agape. Black Star looked down again.  
“I still remember the way you and your cosmos looked in the moonlight. You were standing on the street corner, waiting for me and only me. And you seemed so… relaxed and content when you saw me, I just couldn’t do anything about it. I kind of fell hopelessly, Kid. I wanted to hold your hand, but couldn’t.”  
He squeezed Kid’s hand now, making sure it was there.  
“So, uh…I’m not really good with words, but… I- I really like you, Kid.” His averted eyes moved up to meet Kid’s, hopeful.  
Black Star felt like Kid was looking straight through his eyes into his soul. To Black Star, the silence was deafening.  
“You know, Black Star, what we did in the closet that day… I didn’t mind so much.” Kid’s smile held many different emotions.  
“Then why did you-“  
“In another situation- If we… lived different lives, or some things were different, then maybe I would want to do this, Black Star. But, as of now, I don’t…I don’t think I can handle anything.” Kid stared down at the city.  
Black Star swallowed, carefully removing his hand from Kid’s. He huffed.  
“That’s all right. I didn’t really expect you to say yes anyway.”  
With renewed energy, Black Star jumped up, teetering on the ledge, his hyacinths waving, and began yelling.  
“Did you hear that, world!? Black Star can handle anything, even _rejection!_ If I can do that, then I’m definitely going to SURPASS GOD, _WAHAHAHA!”_  
Kid sighs, resigned, having the slight urge to throw himself off the ledge.  
“Ugh, please, somebody just kill me.”___


	5. Philautia

“What’s happening? Why was school cancelled?”  
Maka and Soul moved further to the front, being crowded in by swarms of students.   
“There’s a big announcement, huh? I wonder if that bitch Arachne finally got what she deserved.”  
“Based on their faces, I’m not sure if it’s good news.” Maka grimaced.  
Maka waved at Crona through the crowd, who was unfortunately too far away to get over to them. She supposed that she would just see them later.  
Asura stood straight up at the podium. A hush fell over the noisy crowd.  
“Lord Death’s second son is dead.”  
Maka’s mind blanked completely. There was no way she heard that correctly. No _fucking way_.   
“What.” Her voice was barely there, a whisper among a loud crowd which had been lit up with awe at the news.   
“Soul.” She reached out for his arm, latching onto the fabric. He was shaking just like she was.   
“I need to get out of this crowd.” She wasn’t sure if he’d heard her or not, but the look in her eyes when she’d turned to him was all he needed. They stumbled through the students, most of which had become solemn after the initial shock.  
Maka looked back to Asura before they went through a side entrance of the school- he had stepped down from the podium and was talking to a few men in dark suits.  
The lights in the academy had been dimmed. The air felt 20 degrees cooler.  
“No, I don’t understand.” Maka hung onto Soul’s arm as she doubled over in shock in the hallway. She clutched at her stomach.  
“They didn’t even tell us what happened. This can’t be real.”  
She looked up to Soul, practically begging, “Please tell me this is a dream.”  
Soul’s eyes held a deep fear, the same as hers. He held eye contact and shook his head slowly, giving a defeated half shrug.   
Maka sunk to the floor, shuddering violently, almost bawling. Soul got onto his knees, but he didn’t know how to comfort her. Should he talk to her? Should he hug her? Should he do nothing?  
His focus was torn away from Maka when he heard a loud _bang_ from across the hall.  
“Black Star!”  
Black Star raised his head, his hand still coiled in a fist on the locker. His eyes looked empty, devoid of any of his regular spark.  
“Soul.”  
Black Star choked out, “I think I know what people mean now when they say that they _wanna die._ ”  
**************************************************************  
“Hnnnn, why is it so dark?”   
He patted around his body, feeling for blankets, and froze up when he discovered an unfamiliar surface.  
“Wait, but this… this isn’t-“  
Kid’s hand came into contact with the hard surface above him. Patting it, he found that it wouldn’t budge, and that it seemed to be encasing him entirely.  
“Shit…”  
Upon further investigation, there was definitely a hard surface on the sides too, way too close for Kid’s comfort.  
“Oh my… death.”  
His hands shot up, pressing at the surface above him, making his hardest attempt to push it up. When he found that there was absolutely no way to move it, he thrust his feet out, kicking at the top repeatedly. He had hoped to somehow break the top of it, but it did no good. He whimpered, feeling his arms involuntarily spread apart and grasp at the walls. He could feel his entire body being overtaken by a nasty trembling sensation, a coldness washing over him, sweating copiously. His whole being felt crumpled, and his soul lashed out in a frenzy.  
As his palm moved over his skin to assure himself that he was still real, the tips of his fingers passed over his upper chest and the frayed stems of his blooming self. Most of his cosmos had been ripped off, others crumpled and dying.  
“N-“   
“No, no, no, _no, no, NO, NO, NONONO **NO!**_ ”  
His eyes had adjusted to the darkness, and just in time for him to see his final resting place.   
He’s curled up in a fetal position, hyperventilating, and then he goes back to the earsplitting screeching and clawing at the sides, for how long, he can’t remember.  
 _He considered that maybe he had never truly left the womb._  
His pulse interjected, persistent, racing up to the end.  
Then he was clawing at his own arms, his own face, like that will release him from his premature grave somehow. And scratching and scraping until his fingers were worn down and bleeding profusely, voice hoarse from calling out, screaming for any kind of savior that wouldn’t come, and for fucks sake, he’s just a kid.  
The whole ground was crying for him.  
**************************************************************  
“I dunno, Sis, this forest seems really big and endless. And they say there’s supposed to be an Arachnophobia hideout here?”  
Liz and Patty kicked around the leaves as they walked along the edgy terrain, unfamiliar with this kind of area. All they’ve known their whole lives was the city.  
Several other academy personnel were flanking them, there for backup in case the insignificant Arachnophobia base they found proved to be bigger than they thought.  
“It’ll be okay, Patty, just stay by me, alright?”  
“Okay.” She didn’t move any closer to her sister, “You know, didn’t they call an emergency meeting at school today? I wonder if they’ll tell us what the news was once we get back.”  
“Yeah, I heard school was actually cancelled, wonder what that’s about… what’s wrong?”  
Patty had halted, breathing in the fresh, forest air, but staring down at a log at her feet.  
“I uh…” she breathed in, “I’m not sure, something just seems off to me. Kind of like… something really bad just happened, or is going to happen, and everything is coming to an end soon.”  
Patty took a few steps forward, legs shaking, standing in front of Liz in a clearing. The sunlight hit her and her sunflower turned upwards.   
“Geez…” Liz mumbled.  
“It’s not like you to be so unsure like this. What’s gotten into you, Patty?” Liz tilts her head and offers her sister a comforting smile, “I promise, big sis is here to protect you, just like it used to be!”  
Patty giggled.  
“Just like always.”  
Liz offered her hand, which Patty took, and they strolled further into the woods.  
Nearing another huge clearing, their eyes were met with a gigantic building at the top of the hill. Spiders crawled around at their feet.  
“Holy-” someone behind them yelled.  
“That’s a _castle.”_  
“That’s really big,” Patty whispered, faltering.  
At the top of the hill, a single Arachnophobia soldier stepped up for them to see.  
And suddenly, there were hundreds. A giant, screaming crowd, all at the top of the peak, looking like they could charge toward them at any moment.  
“Is this-” Someone else muttered from behind Liz and Patty.  
The crowd around the middle parted, revealing none other than Arachne, fanning herself and smirking.  
“There’s no doubt now.”  
“This is their main base.”  
“Patty.” Liz murmured, “Patty, we need to run.”  
Patty’s gaze was transfixed on the crowd. As soon as the people behind them turned around and started running, the crowd of soldiers came rushing toward them.  
 _“Patty!”_  
Patty was forced out of her trance, being along yanked by Liz. They stumbled over logs and thorns, rushing back into the forest and sprinting back toward the helicopter.  
Liz and Patty both yelped as they tripped and fell, Liz hitting her head on something semi-hard and feeling dizzy. She could feel herself being lifted and carried the rest of the way, not completely aware. She was shoved back into the helicopter just as she was regaining full consciousness. She surveyed the area, frantic.  
“Patty… where’s Patty!?” She was forced in against her will and they had already begun lift off.  
 _“Hey!_ Get your hands off of me! Where. Is. My sister!?”  
**************************************************************  
“Big sis?”  
“Where did… Big sis! Where did you go?”  
“Liz!”  
Hearing heavy footsteps and yelling, Patty did the only thing she could do, and ran. She knew she was running for several minutes, though it felt like hours, through this wide-open forest, feeling adrenaline rushing through her. As soon as the weight of what had happened sunk in, and she realized just how alone she was, surrounded by nothing but tall trees, and that the others hadn’t come in the same direction as her and were nowhere to be seen, that is when the panic set in. And when she saw a helicopter rising in the distance and heading in the opposite direction, that’s when she knew she had been abandoned.  
With her brain blanking, she curled up inside of a hole at the base of a tree.   
**************************************************************  
“It’s PATTY! We-we- left her behi-“ Liz almost collapsed, coughing and holding her stomach tightly. She scrambled to grab the man’s collar and yell desperately at him, trying to look intimidating but failing terribly.  
“I have to go back to help her!”  
“Miss, we can’t! That would be incredibly dangerous, Arachnophobia would find out we returned!”  
 _“You can’t do this! She’s my sister!”_  
“We’re going to send a small search team out tomorrow. That’s all we can do.”  
“ _Fuck you!_ She could be dead for all you care, and from what I know about my sister, she probably _is_!” Liz was livid and had to be dragged away. They shut the door in her face.  
**************************************************************  
After Kid’s death and Patty’s disappearance, Crona finally figured out how to work the CD player, and listened to the album Soul gave them. They sort of wished that they hadn’t.  
**************************************************************  
It was a huge surprise to Maka when Black Star invited her, Soul, and Crona to his apartment one day. What she was not surprised to see when she arrived was that there had been several more holes punched in the wall since the last time she had visited.  
Black Star stood in front of the group of four, quivering. Only _four_ because Liz wouldn’t come out of her room. Her mind had essentially shut down since that day, the trauma of losing both her sister and Kid too much for her. Tsubaki was the only one she had talked to.  
“This has something to do with Arachne and Shaula.” Black Star began.  
“Kid’s death couldn’t have just been a stupid coincidence, all they said was that he died by ‘natural causes,’ but I don’t fucking trust them! They’re hiding something, maybe they just want to keep us in the dark to not ‘scare us’ or maybe there’s something worse going on, but I want to find out!”  
“So, what you’re saying is it’s a big conspiracy or some sort?” Soul asked.  
Black Star growled, “I don’t know. But I need to find out the truth, and even if Arachnophobia didn’t kill-” he gulped, “kill Kid like I think, they’ve still done enough already and they need to go down! I need to get my hands on Arachne. She deserves to burn in hell, I’ll make sure she does!”  
The others, though, weren’t entirely convinced. Even if they were, they had no ideas of what to do about it. They left in a hurry, Maka apologizing to Black Star.  
**************************************************************  
Maka and Crona sat in Maka’s room, silent. It was about 1 AM, and Maka had run out of distracting stories to tell Crona entirely. Neither of them could sleep. Especially not Crona.  
Their mind wandered to _death_ and _spiders_ and _blood_ and _black_ and _what if you’re next_ and _oh, god, what if Maka’s next?_ and _you do know that you’re not worth anything, right?_  
Crona thought about the large amount of _nothing_ that they’d done. Nothing productive in school, nothing to protect their friends, nothing to protect Maka, and nothing at the festival. They had been too terrified to show their aunts their face.  
 _ **“She probably hates you now.”**_  
“What, why?” Crona whispered at the sword. Maka looked up from her corner of the bed, curious.  
 _ **“Think about it. All of this death has to accumulate into some sort of hatred. And here you are, demanding all of her attention!! She’s probably traumatized and mad, and mad at you for being unable to help her, and well…”  
“Look at it this way. Even if she doesn’t hate you, you are the one that is going to cause her demise.”**_  
“I-I-”  
 _ **“She’s afraid of love. And here she is, in love with you! How the fuck did you think she was going to die? Or were you just in denial? It’s going to be YOU.”**_  
“Shut up!” Crona said, firmly. This caught Maka’s attention, and she crawled over to them  
“Uh, n-not you, Maka! I wasn’t talking… to you.” As Crona looked at her incomprehensible expression, they started to consider just how much Ragnarok might actually be true.  
“Uhhh, I-” Crona moved off of the bed, away from her.  
“Where are you going?”   
“Nowhere.” _You can’t protect her, she hates you. You can’t protect her, you couldn’t comfort her, our friends are dead, you’re going to kill her._  
Crona couldn’t stop the tears, beginning to quiver. They felt their rose swell again, even bigger.  
“Crona?” Maka climbed onto the floor with them, “Crona, you’re crying, why?”  
They didn’t answer her, instead moving over to the corner, feeling the tears flow harder.  
“Crona-” she got up.  
“Can’t you see that I’m revolting?” Crona asked, looking up to Maka.  
“What, no! Crona,” She was taken aback by their words, “I just want to help you. I… I love you.” Maka choked out.  
“I- I don’t- don’t deserve ANYTHING from you.” Shaky lavender eyes meet stable green ones.  
“But-“  
“You don’t h-have to do that. I’m a waste.” A fucking waste. Arms curled around their knees, sitting on the cold, unsteady floor, body aching, tears flowing like midnight rain.  
 _ **“This girl is becoming far too much. Won’t you kill again, for me?”**_  
They put their hands over their ears. They wanted to block out everything.  
“STOP IT, STOP IT NOW! GET AWAY FROM ME!”  
“Wait, but…” Maka had no idea what to do with this. Crona hadn’t reacted like this before to anything she had done. She knew how to comfort Crona while they were crying, but when they were breaking down like this? She was at a loss.   
She could only wait until Crona had mostly stopped shaking, and was now fiddling with the thorns on their shoulders.  
“I gave this different name to myself.” Crona sniffled, “I thought if I did, it would help me to forget. But it still weighs down on me.”  
Crona got up from the floor, “It’s not even like a phantom limb. It’s REAL. All my fears took a physical form and rooted itself into me and sucked out everything that I was SUPPOSED TO BE. I can’t _TAKE IT ANYMORE.”_  
They yanked an object from a cup on Maka’s desk, which Maka’s brain registered as _scissors_ , right as they exited the room.  
“Crona, no-“  
“I don’t fucking care.”  
Their hand shot up behind their back in a furious attempt to grab at the thorns that were shifting around restlessly. As soon as they maintained a grip on one branch, a hideous snipping sound was heard right as Maka rushed through the door and into the dark kitchen.  
“AH-” Maka halted, terrified. Vine after vine landed on the tile floor.  
“ _STOP IT, PLEASE!_ ” Maka sobbed and slammed against Crona, throwing them against the wall, and nabbing the scissors from their hand.   
With the scissors gone, Crona’s fingers gripped onto the base and yanked, eliciting a sharp cry from them.  
“Get _OFF OF ME_! I NEVER ASKED FOR A ROSE!” They collapsed onto the ground with Maka, who had flung the scissors across the room.  
Crona sobbed, “All I do is destroy.”  
Maka crawled up, wrapping her arms around Crona as she wept, shoving her head into their chest. Crona didn’t protest.  
**************************************************************  
On this particular night, exactly two weeks after the events that had transpired, Soul finally had another dream in the black room. He wasn’t interested in doing anything else but staying seated in the chair, occasionally tapping his finger against the arm rest. The piano across the room mocked him.  
“Tired?” Whispered a voice behind him. Soul grimaced.  
“Don’t _fucking_ talk to me. I don’t want to have to deal with any bullshit from you right now.” He said through his teeth, turning away from the Demon.  
“Unfortunately, I’m going to continue to speak to you whether you like it or not. After all, your mind never shuts up, does it? It’s impossible to block out everything, even when you’re asleep.”  
Soul could only manage a half-assed grunt in return.  
“I think you might want to check on your plants.”  
“What is there to check on? I don’t want to have to look at them.” Soul choked, trying to hide the frustrated tears that were forming in his eyes.  
“Oh, I think what you will find will absolutely _delight_ you.”  
Despite the Demon’s words being even more unnerving than they normally were, Soul spared a glance over to his plants. He had to do a double take, and got up to study them closer.  
“That’s… not right.” The cosmos and the sunflower now appeared to be growing at three times the rate of the other ones, taking over the area. Crona’s was the only one that remained the biggest.  
“Wh-why is this happening?”  
The Demon wagged his finger, “I think you shall find the answer _very_ deep inside yourself, if you look at the right time.”  
Yeah, sure.  
Real fucking helpful.  
**************************************************************  
Soul received a letter in the mail the next day. Assuming it was something stupid, he’d just barely kept himself from throwing it away, but his curiosity getting the best of him.  
When he read it, he promptly ran back upstairs.  
 _“Maka!”_  
“Why are you yelling, Soul!?”  
“I got a letter. You need to see this.”  
 _The basement. I couldn’t fix them.  
-Stein_  
He read the message aloud for Maka to hear, along with Crona and Tsubaki, who they’d called.  
Maka and Soul looked up at each other, almost too afraid to speak.  
“I think I need to go see what he’s talking about.”  
He opened his hand, revealing a rusty key that had also been sent with the letter.  
“Will you come with me?”  
She shook her head.  
“I don’t think I can. Whatever is down there, I don’t want to see it.”  
Tsubaki spoke up.  
“I’ll come with you, Soul.”  
“You don’t have to.”  
“If you really want to see what he’s talking about, I don’t want you to have to go alone.”  
“Black Star?” Tsubaki said on the other side of the line. She didn’t get a response.  
“Okay.” Soul prompted, “Meet me in front of his house.”  
**************************************************************  
“I feel bad that we had to lie and say we were here to visit someone.” Tsubaki murmured as they moved through the half-lit hallway.  
“Well it’s not like they would let us in if we said ‘Hey, we’re here to break into Stein’s basement.’”  
“Still.”  
They stopped to look down a darkened passage at the end of the hall, with a plain door at the end.  
“Is this it?”  
He walked closer and tried the handle. It wouldn’t open.  
“Guess so. Are you ready?”  
She shrugged nervously.  
He inserted the key and turned, jiggling it just a touch. It clicked and the door swung open slightly, a cool air blowing up from below. Tsubaki shivered, wrapping her arms around herself in dread.  
“Let’s go.”  
The stairs were so creaky that Soul was afraid that someone would hear them, and they descended slowly, not quite ready to see the sight below.  
“Where’s the light?”  
Turning on the light was a mistake.  
 _Miss Marie was there._  
She was stitched up and held on a slanted table, and had a large screw implanted in her head, resembling Stein’s. A mostly formed fetus, looking somewhat disintegrated, was stitched up next to her, the remains of plant buds poking out of its stomach.  
Tsubaki gagged and crumbled to the floor, holding her mouth.  
“Oh my god.” She said breathlessly.  
“I think I might puke.” Soul remarked, grabbing for a random bucket on the floor, which unfortunately happened to be full of a goopy, red substance. _That_ made him puke. After that, he tossed the bucket against the wall in frustration, splattering its contents.  
“Why _the hell_ did he want us to see _this!?_ Did he honestly think it was possible to bring people back to life!?”  
Neither of them had an answer.  
**************************************************************  
Asura eventually made an announcement that yes, the academy had found Arachne’s hideout, and no, they weren’t going to organize a full force invasion yet because they did not have enough people. He asked that everyone remain _patient._ There was only one problem with that. Black Star could never be patient.  
**************************************************************  
Perhaps the darkest night of the year had come and winter had blown in, with chilly winds and a hint of snow. The nightguards at the academy found that the school was absolutely freezing at night, with Death City normally not getting this low of temperatures. So, they cut themselves a bit of slack and mostly stayed in the warmer parts of the building, rushing though the freezing corridors without paying much attention. Unfortunately for them, this gave Black Star the perfect opening to sneak through the halls and right into Death’s office.  
 _My dream was to become an assassin._ Finding the information in an important file.  
 _It’s pointless if I can’t act like one._ Sneaking though Soul’s open window to steal the keys to his motorcycle.  
 _But as of now, I only have one mission._ Riding thorough the desert, on and on.  
 _Finding who killed **my** Kid, and making them pay._  
**************************************************************  
Black Star made it to the woods within a few hours, driving around in an attempt to find the castle, not _quite_ sure exactly where it was. That took another hour.  
By the time he got there, he was completely freezing and ready to find some warmth. He was also ready to punch as many people in the face as he could.  
Luckily, he managed to sneak in through a window in the castle, snooping around in order to find out exactly where Arachne or Shaula were. He managed to get lucky, spotting Arachne in a large room with several guards. But by the time they had made it over to her side of the room, undetected, she went through a side hallway, striding rather quickly. Black Star jumped down from his hiding space, silent, and followed her.  
He rushed through the halls quickly, almost losing track of her a few times. The hallways seemed to be endless. When Arachne reached a door, she halted, and Black Star hid behind the corner.  
“I know you’ve been following me. This entire time.”  
“Huh-”  
Arachne had lashed out in Black Star’s direction in a flash, and before Black Star could process what was happening, he woke up on an uncomfortable metal table in a dark room, his arms and legs both bound.  
“ _Hey!_ Where the hell did you go? Get back here, you coward, I want to know what you did to Kid!”  
Arachne stepped out of the darkness, raising an eyebrow.  
“You want to know what _I_ did to the second son of death? Perhaps… you should ask someone else that.”  
Black Star only screamed obscenities back, describing in detail how he’d like to murder Arachne. It involved a chainsaw.  
“I detest children who shout. Maybe we should do something about that… Asura.”  
Asura, too, stepped forward from the darkness.  
Black Star roared, “ **ASURA!?** ”  
“I’ll leave it to you.” Arachne waved as she left.  
“It was you, _**wasn’t it!?**_ ”  
A sharp knife was pulled out first, looking worn and stained.  
“You do way too much screaming. Do you like to hear yourself make so much noise?”  
“Shut _up!_ Answer my question!”  
“After this, you won’t be able to anymore.”  
Asura moved over to Black Star’s right side, and for a moment, Black Star had trouble registering what was happening, until he felt the sharp knife come into contact with his ear and _slice._  
The pain was unlike anything he had experienced before and he screeched, his entire body turning and thrashing in protest as Asura began the slow process of hacking off his ear. Once Asura was done with that ear, he moved to the other, making this process even slower.  
Pain enveloped his entire being with a feeling like burning fire where his ears once were. He could no longer hear his own screaming.  
**************************************************************  
“No, back up! Nobody is allowed in!” Students who had tried to go to school in the morning were forced back, security guards and teachers blocking most of the entrances. A murmur arose among the student populace, saying that they had spotted an ear, hanging just inside the academy entrance.  
“Has anyone seen Black Star? He’s been missing since last night! Please, I need to know!” Tsubaki showed up only in her pajamas and slippers, so desperate that she hadn’t bothered changing and her hair was an un-brushed mess.   
“It’s Black Star, he’s missing-” she tried to explain to another group of students, before looking over their heads into the main entrance and spotting the _ear. _  
She ran past the security before they could even stop her, rushing into the archways and coming to a stop right next to the ear. She gawked up at it.  
“No,” her voice was laced with dread.  
Dashing down the hallway, she began throwing open doors one by one until she found an arm. And then a leg. And then another arm. This arm had a particular Star tattoo etched into the shoulder.  
 _“No, no, no-”_  
Tsubaki knew better than to keep running around but she did anyway, finding the other leg, the other ear, and the torso, which had been crudely dumped into one of the women’s toilets. None of the hyacinths remained on his body.  
She finally reached _Class Crescent Moon_ , already feeling like she was about to pass out, but nonetheless, she threw open the doors, to see Black Star’s head placed onto none other than _her_ desk.  
She’d sprinted back out of the school, in hysterics and screaming garbled nonsense about Black Star. That is how Maka, Soul, and Crona received the news, and Soul then knew where his bike had gone.  
**************************************************************  
Tsubaki’s footsteps didn’t make any noise at all as she made her way across the side of the tower, slowing down to run her hand along the large bell, which was softly reflecting the city lights down below. Her head spun, her eyes blindly wide, absorbing every detail. The wind objected to her presence loudly, shooting itself past her ears in a whistling fury and jostling her legs. It asked her, _Were you born for this? Standing high atop this shy town, giving your future to the stone pavement and the night?_   
A camellia, otherwise known as a Tsubaki, is a flower without fragrance. When she falls, it will be silent and tragic.  
The morning after that, Liz disappeared. She’s left a note saying nothing, but, _“Finally accepting the inevitable, Goodbye.”_ Crona, Maka, and Soul didn’t talk about it. There was nothing they could say. All of their friends had been ripped straight out of their reality.  
**************************************************************  
It was 2:15 AM when Maka had made a decision.  
She called Crona, keeping her voice low, not wanting to wake up Soul.  
“Crona, I’m going to…” she hesitated, “I’m going to go find Arachne.”  
“ _What!?_ ” Crona hissed into the phone, “Isn’t that what Black Star just did?”  
“Yes, but-”  
“So, you’re going on the same suicide mission as him…”  
“Crona, remember my phobia.”  
Maka heard a pause on the other line, before Crona began to whisper.  
“L-lo-”  
“I’m afraid of love, Crona!” Maka almost seemed excited about this, “Which means that they wouldn’t be able to do anything to kill me!”  
Crona considered this. That didn’t however, rule out any chances of her getting badly hurt. They thought about their own fear, the _black rose_ , and considered their own demise.  
“I’m coming with you.”  
“N-no, Crona, you don’t have to-”  
“But I am. Are you leaving soon?”  
Maka breathed out, “Yes.”  
“Wait for me.”  
Crona showed up at her door not long after, lugging the long box that encased the sword _**Ragnarok**_ and wearing a strange pink scarf. They slid the sword out carefully, grasping the hilt like they had known how to wield it all along.  
Crona examined it, “My sword… it’s always whispering to me. It rightfully belongs to me now, doesn’t it?”  
What Crona hadn’t known is that this particular heirloom always got passed down to the _worst_ child, because of it’s strange ability to possess the person it belonged to. It had been given from Echidna to Medusa, and now, it was Crona’s, having killed Medusa. Because of this strange possession factor, is gave the wielder bizarre powers, and was probably one of the most powerful swords in the world.  
Maka passed by Soul’s room, noticing that the door was cracked.   
_I’m sorry about this, Soul._  
She glanced in to see that he was fast asleep.   
_There’s no way he could come with his injury still affecting him. Besides, he’s protected me enough already. It’s my turn to protect him._  
Maka and Crona threw on cloaks, wrote a note to Soul for when he wakes up, and left the apartment.  
The security had only been increased at the academy since the incident, which was about a week ago, and Maka and Crona were having trouble sneaking past them. As soon as they’d exit one hallway, there would be yet another guard in the next hallway. And, not thinking about how they’d get into Lord Death’s room, they were suddenly trapped, without a key.  
“Crap,” Maka lightly pounded on the door, “What now?”  
 _ **“You’re trying to get to Arachne and Shaula’s yeah?”**_ Whipping out her knife, Maka whispered, “Who said that!?”  
 _ **“Me.”**_ Crona held up their sword, embarrassed.  
“Oh.” Maka had been concerned when Crona had told her that the _sword speaks_ , but now she was even more concerned because of her ability new to hear it.  
 _ **“I can guide you there. I know exactly where it is.”**_  
“Why didn’t you say that beforehand?” Maka spun around, indignant, her cloak swishing.  
“Wait…” she stopped, “I didn’t think about _how_ we were going to get there-”  
 _ **“Just leave that to me, too.”**_  
“Hey!” A man’s voice cried out, and a flashlight was pointed toward the two.  
 _ **”Quickly, up to the balcony!**_  
They dashed away from the guard, climbing the stairs and outrunning him. Sprinting through the archway, they heard shouting from below.  
“If you’re lying about this then I’m grabbing you and chucking you as hard as I can off of the side of the balcony.” Maka did not seem amused by the swords low chuckling.  
 _ **“Don’t worry about it, you absolute bitch.”**_  
“He-”  
 _ **“Now, Crona, what you need to do is focus all your attention on me, and on your thorns. Think you can do that?”**_  
“Maybe, but why my thorns?”  
 _ **“Don’t ask questions, dumbass!”**_  
Concentrating deeply, the area around their thorns on their back started to feel like it was _flowing_ , and it only got more intense.  
“Crona, you’re growing _wings!_”  
Surely enough, they looked to see a black energy sprouting from their back, busting out and taking the form of huge, black wings. The thorns seemed to be growing with the wings, weaving their way into them.  
Testing them, Crona found that they had full control of them.  
 _ **“See, isn’t that cool? Now, you have to go exactly where I tell you to go.”**_  
“Maka, grab on!” Handing her the sword, she grabbed their back and held on with one hand, narrowly missing getting batted in the face with the wings.   
Crona took off, shooting up, right as a few guards ran through onto the balcony. Maka screamed, almost falling off, and wrapped her legs around their midsection.  
Rising through the winter nighttime sky, the flew through the desert for a while and into the forest, _**Ragnarok**_ yelling instructions. The sword gave Crona _slightly_ increased strength, but not that much.  
Once they landed- or, uh, _crashed_ \- in the forest, Maka handed the sword back to Crona.   
“That thing has a really weird energy,” she sputtered, “Like a wavelength, or something.” She forced the sword back into their hands.  
The castle was menacing. They approached, climbing the hill and scanning the area.  
“You’re just as scared as I am, right?” Maka faltered, turning to Crona. They nodded back.  
After taking out a few guards at a side entrance, they went in, entering a massive hallway.  
“Where do you think Arachne and Shaula are?”  
“I don’t know, this castle is so big, I have no idea where to go.” She admitted.  
Seeing a door that was cracked and peeking in, she discovered a room full of various weapons. She snuck in and began browsing them, finally settling on a large grey scythe.  
“I think I would feel more comfortable fighting with this.” She declared, and they both rushed out and back through the hallway, weapons at the ready.  
Luckily, the amount of Arachne’s minions that they encountered in the hallways was minimal, and they were able to leave each one unconscious and bleeding before they could call for help. They knew that someone would realize they were there soon enough, so they couldn’t waste any time at all.  
Finally, they stumbled upon some stairs. Going down, they were met with… even more hallways.  
“Huuugh.” Maka grumbled, but still continued forward.  
Arachne was in the same room that Black Star had found her in, but this time, she was alone.  
“Arachne,” Shaula entered, “I’m hearing news that more academy students broke into the castle, two to be exact.”  
Arachne turned, flipping her fan shut.  
“I see. Should we-”  
She was cut off when Maka and Crona burst through the doors, breathing heavily and holding up their weapons, ready.  
“Wow, so you _too_ were able to make it this far,” Arachne said to them, “You academy students _are_ impressive, it seems I’ve underestimated you.”  
“Arachne!” Maka yelled, furious, “And Shaula!”  
“You’re the ones responsible! So many of my friends, people that I love and care about have died, because of _you!_ ”  
She pointed the scythe at them, completely enraged.  
“And now you’re going to pay for _what you’ve done!_ ”  
Arachne disregarded her.  
“Kurona.” She purred, locking eyes with them.  
Crona began to freak out, but maintained eye contact.  
 _ **”Bitch.”**_ Ragnarok whispered.  
“During the festival, I knew exactly where you were, the whole time.”  
“But why-”  
“I was interested to see how you’d react. You did exactly what I expected- you only hid from me, and ran, letting you friends do the fighting. But, what I did not expect was to see you here now. You’ve surprised me.”  
Arachne opened the fan and Shaula drew her knife, preparing themselves. Shaula scowled. Arachne only looked amused.   
“Perhaps you will surprise me some more.”  
“Let’s _go_!” Maka screeched.  
Maka lunged forward first, running directly toward Arachne, bringing back her scythe. She swung, but Arachne moved out of the way, smacking Maka with the fan.  
Shaula had targeted Crona, but she wasn’t able to break past the sword. Still stabbing, she ducked as Crona swung and then kicked their shins, making Crona stumble backward.  
“ _Crona!_ ” Maka cried out and raced toward Shaula, aiming to cut her with the scythe.   
“Huh?” Shaula whipped around and sliced at Maka, barely grazing her front. Arachne came up behind her, claws ready to strike. Crona jumped up and knocked Shaula out of the way, throwing themselves in front of Maka.  
“ _I’ll protect you, Maka!_ ”  
They sprang forward, blocking with the sword and then swinging at Arachne, yelling. Arachne stepped back, narrowly dodging all of Crona’s swings. Maka turned back to Shaula, finally landing a hit before Shaula could react, grazing her side.  
“ _Auuugh!_ ” Shaula shrieked, picking herself up off of the floor and fleeing into a side hallway and down the stairs, clutching at her side.  
“Shaula!” Arachne called out and ran after her, but not before Crona sliced her arm, spilling more blood.  
Making her way through a hallway in the lower level, Shaula gripped her side, feeling blood escape quickly. Drawing her knife again, she spun around, hearing footsteps.  
“Who’s there?”   
She stumbled, and upon hearing someone shuffle behind her, she didn’t think before she turned around and stabbed.  
She was met with her sister, doubled over, the knife in her stomach.  
Arachne coughed.  
“Finally, you’ve killed me. Just like I always knew you would, dear sister.”  
“ _What!?_ ”  
“Arachne!” Barely a whisper as she collapsed.  
“Dammit! If you’d have told me the truth before then I’d-” she collapsed herself, hardly able to hold herself up with her hands.  
Upstairs, Crona and Maka had followed them into the hallway.  
“Which way did they go?” Maka called, throwing open as many doors as she could.  
Crona finally found the staircase, drops of blood on the steps.  
“This way!” they yelled to her from down the hallway. They both descended, following the trail of blood.  
What they found was Arachne’s body on the stone floor. The nightshades had already begun to wilt. Shaula had left.  
“She’s _dead!_ ” Maka exclaimed, examining the knife still buried in her stomach.  
“But where’s Shaula?”  
Hearing a noise from down the hall, the two headed in that direction. Finally, they came upon a set of large, fanciful doors.  
“Do you think…”  
“Let’s see.” Crona said, solemn as they stared at the bizarre patterns on the doors, patterns that kind of looked like _eyes._  
Together, they pushed open the heavy doors, entering a dark room. They heard something stir.  
“Why would you disturb my sleep?” It was a man’s voice, soft and drowsy. Shifting, the man sat up on the bed, blinking drowsily at the light coming through the door.  
“But- you’re-”  
“Hmm?” Asura slowly lifted himself off of the bed. He carefully turned on the lamp.  
“Asura. Kid’s brother.”  
“Yes, and?” He sleepily droned.  
Maka scowled angrily, “You’re responsible for what happened to Black Star.”  
“I won’t deny that. It was all rather clever, don’t you think?” He stepped into the light, revealing himself fully. He looked even more like a corpse than usual.   
“Why did you do it?”  
“Do what?” he grumbled.  
“Why did you join Arachne?”  
Asura fidgeted with his spider lilies, taking special care to smooth each one out, before speaking.  
“I joined Arachne,” He hissed, “Because she promised a release from the fear. An outlet to which I could let go of my anger and anxiousness. She wanted certain people dead, including my father.”  
He laughed.  
“The less people on earth, the less that could kill me, I suppose.”  
“Kid was easy. I knew what he was afraid of since we were children. I used to torment him by locking him in dark closets or shoving him in boxes. Once it was decided that he should die, I knew exactly what I needed to do.”  
“Shut UP!”  
“Ah,” Asura spotted Crona’s scarf, “I gave that to you, didn’t I?”  
He stepped forward.   
“Unfortunately, I’ll be needing it back now.”  
“Don’t get near them!” Maka was already rushing toward Asura, swinging her scythe around and bringing it down. It only hit the floor.  
“Hm,” Asura pushed at her face, shoving her out of the way and trudging toward Crona.   
“You killed Medusa, didn’t you?”  
“I-”  
“Have you managed to kill Arachne and Shaula too? Such a shame-”  
Crona readied themself, but felt as though they couldn’t move or even speak, fear-stricken.  
“-that you would have to murder your own family.” He chuckled.  
“ _Asura!_ ” Maka, running up behind Asura, only got smacked to the ground.  
“Maka!”  
“How is his hit so powerful, he didn’t even punch me!” Maka rubbed her face, glaring up at Asura.  
He kneeled down next to her, yanking a pigtail, producing a sharp cry from her. She opened her eyes, noticing that he’d pulled out a knife.  
“You could die in the same way your loud friend did.” He scraped the knife over her ear, “Or maybe… something even more painful.”  
Crona, seeing this, finally regained the ability to speak.  
“Asura.” They whispered, calmly.  
Asura turned back to Crona, not letting go of Maka’s hair.  
“I did kill my mother, and… I don’t regret it. What I do have to live with now, is,” They took a deep breath, “the memories, the crushing guilt, and this sword. And I understand… the feeling of being afraid of everything.”  
Crona held up Ragnarok, brandishing it.  
“My sword whispers to me, breaking through my consciousness. It’s constantly telling me to kill. I can keep myself from doing what it says. But,” their face was determined, eyes piercing, “I have no choice but to kill you.”  
“My sword.” They breathed out.  
“It doesn’t just whisper,” Crona aligned the sword with their face, “It screams.”  
The most horrifying screeching noise pierced the air, black shadows shooting about in every direction. Their thorns lashed out, moving blindingly fast. Asura was hit with one of the vines and thrown onto the carpet. Maka took this as her chance to escape, covering her ears and running blindly in the direction of Crona.  
“ _Ahhhhhhhh!_ ” Asura’s shrieks were barely heard over the sword, and Crona took a few quick steps forward, thrusting toward Asura, stabbing into his arm.  
Crona was suddenly thrown back, hit with the force of Asura’s hand, but managed to stay on their feet. Asura’s laugh was manic, he screamed at Crona over the screeching.  
“I will _not_ be killed by a child with a _screaming sword!_ ” But Asura was getting weaker and weaker as the days went on. As of now, he was skin and bones, fighting even to keep himself standing. Everything he had done to protect himself had accumulated to make him frailer, crumpled, dying.  
He couldn’t dodge Crona’s last blow. Crona yelled along with the sword as they sunk the blade into his skin, ripping through him, watching as the thin flesh tore away easily. After Asura’s body was thrown down, Crona collapsed, and the sword became quiet once again.  
“Crona! Are you okay?!” Maka ran over and helped Crona up to their knees, brushing their hair out of their face.  
“We did it.” Crona mumbled, flashing a grin at Maka. She grinned back and nodded, pulling Crona off of the ground. She stepped around Asura’s corpse cautiously.  
“We should get out of here.”   
Before they could take a step toward the doors, Crona felt their blood _move_. It was an absolutely sickening feeling, and they grasped at their heart, gasping.   
“ _Crona!?_ ”  
Crona’s thorns rose up, their flower growing to it’s maximum size and weighing down on them. Their blood felt like it was all rushing toward their back, being sucked into their rose. It was like their thorns were overwhelming them, growing even darker than they were before and shooting out.  
It could have been easily preventable. But, because Stein had never begun to treat Crona’s condition, the blood cells kept multiplying faster than they needed to. The flower still fed off of Crona’s extra blood, sucking it in and accumulating it, growing at an alarming rate. The thorns had become too powerful, and Crona could no longer control them.  
Crona shrieked in terror as the thorns began to surround them, only catching one last glimpse of Maka, who was knocked down by the force of the branches. They were quickly surrounded by black, on all sides. The world opened wide and swallowed them whole.  
Maka’s vision was blurred, pushing herself up, and witnessing the vines overtake Crona and then still themselves, only shifting a bit. Maka was speechless, hopeless, waiting. After a moment, the vines broke apart, bursting open and flying everywhere. Maka guarded her face, only daring to look once everything had settled.  
 _Nothing_ was there, except for the rose.  
“Wh-”  
She reached out, hand shaking, and wrapped her hand around the rose.   
“ _Come back._ ”  
She scraped at the floor with her hand, burying her face into the rose. A few petals fell off.  
“ _Come back!_ ” Maka didn’t want to believe that this was real, that she’d just lost them so easily. Her head spun.  
“ _PLEASE, Crona, you have to **come back!”**_ Crumpling onto the floor, she felt her heard ache, the worst pain she’s possible ever felt.   
“You can’t be gone, I love you!”   
Her heart broke into a million pieces, and everything went white.


	6. Agape

_I asked to be taken to the place where the towers rise like the sun. Little did I know; the sun was slipping._  
By now, I’m used to getting lost in the chaos. In my dreams, I experience every possibility, laid out in front of me. My friends always seem to get sucked back into every awful thing imaginable, but we always survive the madness. Madness- as a whole, that’s our resonance, our wavelength, one that is unabashedly dry. And I’ve realized-  
To feel is to remain in a state of motion. We need to feel the fear, letting it come to us, but never fully sinking in, keeping it controlled as we move about our lives. If you let it become too strong, it can thrash you open and bring you to a buzzing stagnancy.  
I figured out that I play the piano to control the fear, to never let it get too strong and encompass me. The Demon in my head is nothing more than an accumulation of that fear, guiding me along in a strange way. I need to keep my fear so I can protect my friends they way that they’ve protected me.  
But, no matter what-  
My friends never die. 

 

 

“Hu-”  
Crona’s eyes were open, but they weren’t properly processing what was happening. They looked down- red and black tiled floor- then back up, and saw Soul sitting in a chair, wearing a suit, gaping at Crona like they were a ghost.  
Forming a circle around Soul, there also stood Maka, Black Star, Tsubaki, Kid, Liz, and Patty, all equally flabbergasted with what was currently happening. The Demon toddled to the center.  
“Aw, poor, Soul, you were scared to death in your sleep. Aren’t you glad you took the necessary precautions?”  
“Scared to- what!?”  
Soul jumped up and spun around, getting a good look at everyone, who were dressed in extravagant black attire. Their flowers were all trailing down to their pots, rooted in them. Soul then noticed that he was rooted in his own pot, right next to the chair. He turned back to the demon.  
“Are you telling me that I just _regrew my friends_?!”  
Black Star, on the other side, started yelling, clutching at his ears.  
“I can _HEAR! AHHHHHHHHHH!_ ”  
“Black Star, shut up!”  
He stopped when he was encased in a crushing hug from Tsubaki. She was bawling, struggling to stand.  
“Hey, Tsu,” he patted her on the back, returning the hug,  
“I’m sorry I worried you,” he spoke softly, feeling tears escape his own eyes.  
“Black Star, you dumbass!” She only buried her head in his shoulder, weeping, feeling a strange mix of happy and overwhelmed.  
Liz and Patty had also regained the ability to speak and move, and were holding onto each other like they hadn’t seen each other in 10 years. Kid, next to them, only glanced around rapidly, trying to make sure that he was actually _here_.  
“Come here, Kid!”  
Liz and Patty surrounded him, crushing him in a hug. Before Kid knew what was happening, he was crying too, leaning against the sisters so he wouldn’t fall. _This was the only acceptable form of being trapped_ , he thought.  
With all this happening, Crona didn’t know what to do. They heard a whisper next to them.  
Turning, they found Maka, holding out her hand for them, tears spilling down her face messily. Her smile was shaky, but she couldn’t contain it.  
“Hey.”  
As soon as they took her hand, she had launched herself at them, pressing their foreheads together.  
“ _Crona_ ,” she sobbed, but laughed, “I found you again.”  
Soul was feeling overwhelmed, and had to sit back down again, holding his head.  
“What’s gonna happen when I wake up?” He asked the Demon firmly.  
“Oh, you’ll see. Speaking of waking up, are you ready to do so?”  
He took a deep breath, looking back up at his friends celebrating. Being reunited like this was almost too much. Nonetheless, he nodded.  
“Didn’t I tell you how incredibly real your dreams are, Soul?”  
Sitting up in bed, Soul was almost blinded by the morning sun. He felt something tug, and looked down to his poppies and the vine that came off of them, rooted in the pot next to his bed. Looking up, he was amazed to see all of his friends next to the pots, still in their formal black clothes, all sprawled on top of each other, snoozing.  
**************************************************************  
“Crona, come on! It’s about to start!”  
Catching up with the others, Crona swung the lantern as they walked, a round one that they had picked out themself. The group gathered in the park, holding their own respective lanterns, jabbering to each other and laughing. This night had been designated to remember those that Arachnophobia had killed, with springtime coming to warm the air.  
“Hey,” Black Star snapped when Kid was jostled by the crowd a bit, “Back off!”  
“It’s okay, Black Star.” Kid sighed, grabbing Black Star’s hand. Black Star huffed an apology. On their way here, Kid had occasionally been giving Black Star smooches, so he couldn’t really complain.  
Maka leaned her head on Crona, humming appreciatively while she looked up at the stars. Crona's newly sprouted red roses had just begun to bloom.  
With literally everyone else on earth thinking that these people were dead, and no logical explanation, it took a while for them to play it off as some dramatic ploy by Asura to fake all of their deaths. It’s not like it was _that_ far from the truth.  
This group of friends all held each other tight, keeping what had happened to them a secret from anyone else.  
Despite not feeling that their destinies were controlled by their previous phobias anymore, some things still affected them. Crona still disliked the feeling of the thorns against their back, and examined them often to check that they weren’t growing. Kid sometimes still woke up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night, making sure he was still in his bed. Tsubaki still stayed away from high places, it took a while for Liz to finally tell Tsu and Patty about what led to her death, Patty often kept an eye on her sister to make sure that she was still there, and Black Star began to flinch whenever he got cut by anything, never touching a knife again.  
Kid had finally entered the graveyard, but only to see proof that his own name was there, etched into the tombstone. He left once he began to think about his own body lying underneath the dirt.  
Not long after being revived, Ragnarok showed up at Crona’s door, hissing, _**What?! Did you think I was just going to stay away?**_  
“Oh! It’s time to release them!” a hush fell over the crowd as they lit their lanterns, pushing them up into the sky and watching them float away. The whole of Death City was participating, so there had to be thousands of lanterns, all rising up toward the moon.  
“Mine’s for Tsugumi.” Maka had whispered earlier, picking out a lantern that featured a symbol of the sun.  
Maka looked overjoyed, gazing up at all of the lanterns in the sky, her eyes reflecting them. Crona bent down to kiss her on the forehead.  
“ _Love you,_ ” they whispered into the wind.  
As soon as the crowd began to dissipate, Maka and the others stayed there, sitting on blankets that they brought or running around in the night. Soul smirked when he saw Black Star trip and faceplant into the grass.  
“Hey there.” Maka looked down at him, her face upside down from Soul’s point of view.  
“Hey.” Patting the spot on the blanket next to him, Maka took a seat.  
“I-uh, never really got the chance to ask how that was possible. You know, the thing in your dream.”  
Soul shrugged, “Hell if I know.”  
“But still, thank you.”  
He looked at her, puzzled.  
“For, uh- re-growing me!” Maka realized how weird that sounded, but Soul still smiled.  
“Sure, whatever.” He laughed, throwing an arm around Maka’s shoulder, and looked back up at the stars.  
Soul kept having those strange dreams, which he told Maka about often, but they didn’t frighten him as much anymore.  
Eventually, they packed up their stuff, seeing night begin to fade, and all walked out of the park together, toward dawn.


End file.
